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HANDBOOK 



LATIN POETRY, 



CONTAINING SELECTIONS FROM 



OVID, VIRGIL, AND HORACE, 



WITH NOTES AND GRAMMATICAL REFERENCES. 



jr HP HANSON, 

PRINCIPAL OF THE CLASSICAL INSTITUTE, WATERVILLE, ME. 

J" 

Y AND 



f,A 



WjTJ^ROLFE, 

MASTER OF THE HIGH SCHOOL, CAMBRIDGE, MASS. 



SECOND EDITION. 



BOSTON: 
CROSBY AND AINSWORTH 

NEW YORK: O. S. FELT. 
1866. 



^ 






.* 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by 
J. H. HANSON AND W. J. ROLFE, 
the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. 



University Press : Welch, Bigelow, & Co., 
Cambridge. 



4? J 



PREFACE 



This book owes its existence to a popular demand. 
Soon after the publication of the Preparatory Latin Prose 
Book, the editor of that work began to be solicited by 
teachers in various parts of the country to prepare a book 
of Latin Poetry on the same plan. It was not, however, 
until these solicitations had become general and urgent, 
that the idea of undertaking the preparation of such a 
work was seriously entertained. 

In the arrangement of the text, the editors have fol- 
lowed what they conceive to be the order of difficulty, so 
far as it relates to the authors themselves, and therefore 
the order in which they should be severally studied ; but 
in respect to the portions selected from each author, the 
arrangement found in most school editions has been fol- 
lowed. The advantages, in a classical and educational 
point of view, of reading an author comparatively easy, 
like Ovid, before taking poetry so difficult as that of 
Virgil and Horace, will not be overlooked by those who 
are desirous of finding and pursuing the best methods. 

In the selection of materials, the aim has been to com- 
bine variety, interest, and utility. Accordingly, some- 
thing — and that the portion deemed most interesting 
and profitable — has been drawn from every field in which 
our authors had distinguished themselves. In all cases, 
however, except the Metamorphoses of Ovid, entire poems 
or books have been taken. This course was preferred, 
not only as giving a completer view of the poem consid- 



IV PREFACE. 

ered as a work of art, and as contributing to the interest 
of the student, but for the greater convenience of those 
who may wish to finish reading the author. The selec- 
tions from Ovid are nearly, though not exactly, the same 
as in other school editions published in this country ; all 
of which are based on the edition of the Rev. C. Bradley, 
published long ago in England. From Virgil, the ist, 3d, 
4th, 5th, 7th, and 9th Eclogues, the ist and 2d books of 
the Georgics, and the first six books of the Aeneid have 
been taken. The quantity embraced in these selections 
is fully equal to that required for admission to most of the 
colleges of the country ; and students intending to enter 
colleges requiring more can easily find an equivalent in 
other parts of the book. 

In the Ovid text we have followed Loers, with an occa- 
sional reading from other editors. The Virgil text is that 
of Conington (London, 1863). The text of no ancient 
profane writer has had more of critical labor and talent 
expended upon it than that of Virgil ; and we hazard 
nothing in saying that in our judgment Conington's text 
is by far the most perfect mat has yet appeared. In the 
selections from Horace we have followed the reading and 
the pointing of Macleane's larger edition (London, 1853), 
except in a very few passages. 

The' Lives of Ovid and Virgil have been compiled from 
the best authorities, partially indicated by foot-notes. The 
Life of Horace is mainly abridged from Theo. Martin's, 
in the Encyclopaedia Britannica (8th edition), reprinted 
with little change in his " Odes of Horace." 

For the general character of the Notes, the reader is 
referred to the principles laid down in the Preface to the 
Preparatory Latin Prose Book, so far at least as those 
principles are applicable to a book of poetry. Those on 
Ovid are mostly original, Burmann, Loers, and Haupt 
being the authorities chiefly consulted. They are pur- 
posely elementary, largely grammatical, and contain few 



PREFACE. V 

references to disputed questions, which young pupils 
would not understand. They are intended, in short, for 
elementary drill. 

The Notes on Virgil, as also the Introductions to the 
several poems and books, have been drawn for the most 
part from Conington, whose sound judgment and critical 
acumen justly entitle his authority to special considera- 
tion ; but Henry, Gossrau, Wagner, Forbiger, Heyne, 
Bryce, and Keightley have been constantly consulted. 
The Arguments prefixed to the several books of the Geor- 
gics and Aeneid have been taken chiefly from.Bryce's 
" Notes on Virgil." The Virgil notes are less elementary 
than those on Ovid, though continuing the same sort of 
drill by more frequent grammatical references than are to 
be found in any school edition of Virgil yet published. 
Disputed points, critical questions, and various author- 
ities on doubtful passages have been somewhat frequently 
introduced, giving the pupil an occasional glimpse of the 
broad field of classical learning and research which is 
opening before him. 

In the Notes on Horace, the reading of the Ovid and 
Virgil, or at least considerable portions of them, has been 
presupposed. Less of mere grammatical drill would in 
that case be needed, except on the more unusual construc- 
tions, and those peculiar to Horace, especially his numerous 
Grecisms. The notes, therefore, are of a more miscella- 
neous character, relating rather to the collateral and inci- 
dental suggestions of the text. In short, the aim has been 
to awaken an interest in the whole range of classical Ro- 
man literature, and history, and 'life ; though the limits of 
the book allowed little more than the giving of suggestions 
for the student to follow out himself, — mere guide-posts 
to the many roads diverging from the main track. 

The authorities on Horace have been Macleane (from 
whom many of the introductions to the Odes and many of 
the notes have been taken with little alteration except com- 



VI PREFACE. 

pression), Orelli, Dillenburger (ed. i860), and Ritter, with 
occasional use of the older German and English editions. 
Of American editions none have been used except the ex- 
cellent one of Professor J. L. Lincoln, to which reference 
has been made in all cases where matter has been drawn 
directly from it. His Life of Horace and his Prolegomena 
are worthy of special commendation ; and students wish- 
ing to read more of Horace can hardly find a better edition 
in compact form than that of Professor Lincoln. 

In all cases, matter drawn from whatever source has 
been carefully studied, condensed, and recast, when neces- 
sary, to adapt it to our purposes. This has often exacted 
more labor than wholly original matter would have done. 

Both editors are responsible for all parts of the work, 
all the matter having passed through the hands of both, 
and the work of each having been revised, corrected, and 
modified by the other. The publication of the book has 
been delayed in part by this determination of the editors 
to go individually over all that they had written, and, as 
far as possible, to give unity and symmetry to the whole. 

With this brief general statement of the origin, plan, 
character, and sources of our work, we send it forth in the 
hope that it may meet the expectations of those who have 
desired its publication, and may aid in awakening and pro- 
moting a livelier interest in classical studies. 

J. H. HANSON, 
November 1, 1865. W. J. ROLFE. 



Teachers and friends who may discover typograph- 
ical or other errors, will confer a favor by calling our 
attention to them. 



CONTENTS. 



OVID. 



Page 



The Metamorphoses : Selections from Books I. -VI., VIII., 

X., and XI I 

The Tristia: Book IV., Elegy 10 61 

VIRGIL. 

The Bucolics : Eclogues I., III., IV., V., VII., and IX. . 65 

The Georgics : Books I. and II 83 

The Aeneid: Books I. -VI 113 

HOEACE. 

The Odes : I. 1-4, 7, 9-12, 14, 16, 22, 24, 26, 31, 34, 35, 
37, 38 ; II. 2, 3, 9, 10, 13-18, 20 ; III. 1 -5, 8, 16, 24, 29, 

30; IV. 2-4, 7, 9, 14 247 

The Secular Hymn 300 

The Epodes : 2, 7, 13, and 16 303 

The Satires: I. 1, 5, 6, 9; II. 6 309 

The Epistles: I. 2, 10, 11, 16, 20; II. 1, 2 . . . 326 

The Art of Poetry 349 

NOTES. 

List of Abbreviations 364 

The Life of Ovid 365 

Notes on Ovid 369 

The Life of Virgii 427 

Notes on Virgil 432 

The Life of Horace 649 

Notes on Horace 656 



P. OVIDII NASONIS 

METAMORPHOSES. 

LIBER I. 

* * * * * 

Aurea prima sata est aetas, quae vindice nullo, 
Sponte sua, sine lege fidem rectumque colebat. 9° 

Poena metusque aberant, nee verba minantia fixo 
Aere legebantur, nee supplex turba timebat 
Judicis ora sui, sed erant sine judice tuti. 
Nondum caesa suis, peregrinum ut viseret orbem, 
Montibus in liquidas pinus descenderat undas, 95 

Nullaque mortales praeter sua litora norant. 
Nondum praecipites cingebant oppida fossae ; 
Non tuba directi, non aeris cornua flexi, 
Non galeae, non ensis erat : sine militis usu 
Mollia securae peragebant otia gentes. 100 

Ipsa quoque immunis rastroque intacta, nee ullis 
Saucia vomeribus, per se dabat omnia tellus ; 
Contentique cibis nullo cogente creatis, 
Arbuteos foetus montanaque fraga legebant, 
Cornaque et in duris haerentia mora rubetis, 105 

Et quae deciderant patula Jovis arbore glandes. 
Ver erat aeternum, placidique tepentibus auris 
Mulcebant zephyri natos sine semine flores. 
Mox etiam fruges tellus inarata ferebat, 
Nee renovatus ager gravidis canebat aristis ; no 

Flumina jam lactis, jam flumina nectaris ibant, 
Flavaque de viridi stillabant ilice mella. 



2 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Postquam, Saturno tenebrosa in Tartara misso, 

Sub Jove mundus erat, subiit argentea proles, 

Auro deterior, fulvo pretiosior aere. «s 

Jupiter antiqui contraxit tempora veris, 

Perque hiemes aestusque et inaequales autumnos 

Et breve ver spatiis exegit quatuor annum. 

Turn primum siccis aer fervoribus ustus 

Canduit, et ventis glacies adstricta pependit. 120 

Turn primum subiere domos : domus antra fuere 

Et densi frutices et vinctae cortice virgae. 

Semina turn primum longis Cerealia sulcis 

Obruta sunt, pressique jugo gemuere juvenci. 

Tertia post illas successit ahenea proles, 125 

Saevior ingeniis et ad horrida promtior arma, 

Non scelerata tamen. De duro est ultima ferro. 

Protinus irrupit venae pejoris in aevum 

Omne nefas ; fugere pudor verumque fidesque ; 

In quorum subiere locum fraudesque dolique 130 

Insidiaeque et vis et amor sceleratus habendi. 

Vela dabant ventis, nee adhuc bene noverat illos 

Navita ; quaeque diu steterant in montibus altis, 

Fluctibus ignotis insultavere carinae. 

Communemque prius, ceu lumina solis et aurae, 135 

Cautus humum longo signavit limite mensor. 

Nee tantum segetes alimentaque debita dives 

Poscebatur humus ; sed itum est in viscera terrae, 

Quasque recondiderat Stygiisque admoverat umbris, 

Effodiuntur opes, irritamenta malorum. 140 

Jamque nocens ferrum, ferroque nocentius aurum 

Prodierat ; prodit bellum, quod pugnat utroque, 

Sanguineaque manu crepitantia concutit arma. 

Vivitur ex rapto : non hospes ab hospite tutus, 

Non socer a genero ; fratrum quoque gratia rara est. 145 

Imminet exitio vir conjugis, ilia mariti ; 

Lurida terribiles miscent aconita novercae ; 

Filius ante diem patrios inquirit in annos. 



METAMORPH. LIB. T. 3 

Victa jacet pietas, et Virgo caede madentes, 

Ultima coelestum, terras Astraea reliquit. 150 

Neve foret terris securior arduus aether, 

Affectasse ferunt regnum coeleste Gigantas, 

Altaque congestos struxisse ad sidera montes. 

Turn pater omnipotens misso perfregit Olympum 

Fulmine, et excussit subjecto Pelion Ossae. 155 

Obruta mole sua quum corpora dira jacerent, 

Perfusam multo natorum sanguine Terram 

Immaduisse ferunt calidumque animasse cruorem, 

Et, ne nulla suae stirpis monumenta manerent, 

In faciem vertisse hominum. Sed et ilia propago 160 

Contemtrix superum saevaeque avidissima caedis 

Et violenta fuit : scires e sanguine natos. 

Quae pater ut summa vidit Saturnius arce, 

Ingemit et, facto nondum vulgata recenti, 

Foeda Lycaoniae referens convivia mensae, 165 

Ingentes animo et dignas Jove concipit iras, 

Conciliumque vocat : tenuit mora nulla vocatos. 

Est via sublimis, coelo manifesta sereno ; 

Lactea nomen habet, candore notabilis ipso : 

Hac iter est superis ad magni tecta Tonantis 170 

Regalemque domum. Dextra laevaque deorum 

Atria nobilium valvis celebrantur apertis ; 

Plebs habitat diversa locis ; a fronte potentes 

Coelicolae clarique suos posuere penates. 

Hie locus est, quern, si verbis audacia detur, 175 

Haud timeam magni dixisse Palatia coeli. 

Ergo ubi marmoreo superi sedere recessu, 

Celsior ipse loco sceptroque innixus eburno 

Terrificam capitis concussit terque quaterque 

Caesariem, cum qua terram, mare, sidera movit. 180 

Talibus inde modis ora indignantia solvit : 

Non ego pro mundi regno magis anxius ilia 

Tempestate fui, qua centum quisque parabat 

Injicere anguipedum captivo brachia coelo : 



4 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Nam, quanquam ferus hostis erat, tamen illud ab uno 185 

Corpore et ex una pendebat origine bellum. 

Nunc mihi, qua totum Nereus circumsonat orbem, 

Perdendum est mortale genus. Per flumina juro 

Infera, sub terras Stygio labentia luco, 

Cuncta prius tentata : sed immedicabile vulnus 190 

Ense reddendum est, ne pars sincera trahatur. 

Sunt mihi Semidei, sunt rustica numina, Nymphae 

Faunique Satyrique et monticolae Silvani : 

Quos quoniam coeli nondum dignamur honore, 

Quas dedimus, certe terras habitare sinamus. 19s 

An satis, O superi, tutos fore creditis illos, 

Quum mihi, qui fulmen, qui vos habeoque regoque, 

Struxerit insidias notus feritate Lycaon ? 

Contremuere omnes, studiisque ardentibus ausum 

Talia deposcunt. Sic, quum manus impia saevit 200 

Sanguine Caesareo Romanum exstinguere nomen, 

Attonitum tanto subitae terrore ruinae 

Humanum genus est totusque perhorruit orbis ; 

Nee tibi grata minus pietas, Auguste, tuorum, 

Quam fuit ilia Jovi. Qui postquam voce manuque 205 

Murmura compressit, tenuere silentia cuncti. 

Substitit ut clamor, pressus gravitate regentis, 

Jupiter hoc iterum sermone silentia rupit : 

Ille quidem poenas — curam hanc dimittite — solvit ; 

Quod tamen admissum, quae sit vindicta, docebo. 210 

Contigerat nostras infamia temporis aures ; 

Quam cupiens falsam, summo delabor Olympo : 

Et deus humana lustro sub imagine terras. 

Longa mora est, quantum noxae sit ubique repertum, 

Enumerare : minor fuit ipsa infamia vero. 215 

Maenala transieram, latebris horrenda ferarum, 

Et cum Cyllene gelidi pineta Lycaei ; 

Arcados hinc sedes et inhospita tecta tyranni 

Ingredior, traherent quum sera crepuscula noctem. 

Signa dedi venisse deum, vulgusque precari 220 



METAMORPH. LIB. I. 5 

Coeperat ; irridet primo pia vota Lycaon, 

Mox ait, Experiar, deus hie, discrimine aperto, 

An sit mortalis, nee erit dubitabile verum. 

Nocte gravem somno nee opina perdere morte 

Me parat : haec illi placet experientia veri. 225 

Nee contentus eo, missi de gente Molossa 

Obsidis unius jugulum mucrone resolvit, 

Atque ita semineces partim ferventibus artus 

Mollit aquis partim subjecto torruit igni. 

Quos simul imposuit mensis, ego vindice flamma 230 

In dominum dignosque everti tecta Penates. 

Territus ipse fugit, nactusque silentia ruris 

Exululat frustraque loqui conatur : ab ipso 

Colligit os rabiem, solitaeque cupidine caedis 

Vertitur in pecudes ; et nunc quoque sanguine gaudet. 235 

In villos abeunt vestes, in crura lacerti ; 

Fit lupus, et veteris servat vestigia formae : 

Canities eadem est, eadem violentia vultus, 

Idem oculi lucent, eadem feritatis imago. 

Occidit una domus ; sed non domus una perire 240 

Digna fuit : qua terra patet, fera regnat Erinnys ; 

In facinus jurasse putes. Dent ocius omnes, 

Quas meruere pati — sic stat sententia — poenas. 

Dicta Jovis pars voce probant stimulosque frementi 

Adjiciunt ; alii partes assensibus implent. 245 

Est tamen humani generis jactura dolori 

Omnibus, et, quae sit terrae mortalibus orbae 

Forma futura, rogant ; quis sit laturus in aras 

Tura ? ferisne paret populandas tradere terras ? 

Talia quaerentes — sibi enim fore cetera curae - 250 

Rex superum trepidare vetat, sobolemque priori 

Dissimilem populo promittit origine mira. 

Jamque erat in totas sparsurus fulmina terras ; 

Sed timuit, ne forte sacer tot ab ignibus aether 

Conciperet flammas, longusque ardesceret axis. 255 

Esse quoque in fatis reminiscitur, affore tempus, 



Q P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Quo mare, quo tellus correptaque regia coeli 

Ardeat et mundi moles operosa laboret 

Tela reponuntur manibus fabricata Cyclopum : 

Poena placet diversa, genus mortale sub undis 260 

Perdere et ex omni nimbos dimittere coelo. 

Protinus Aeoliis Aquilonem claudit in antris 

Et quaecumque fugant inductas flamina nubes, 

Emittitque Notum. Madidis Notus evolat alis, 

Terribilem picea tectus caligine vultum ; 265 

Barba gravis nimbis, canis fluit unda capillis, 

Fronte sedent nebulae, rorant pennaeque sinusque. 

Utque manu late pendentia nubila pressit, 

Fit fragor : hinc densi funduntur ab aethere nimbi. 

Nuntia JunoniS' varios induta colores, 270 

Concipit Iris aquas alimentaque nubibus affert. 

Sternuntur segetes, et deplorata colonis 

Vota jacent longique perit labor irritus anni. 

Nee coelo contenta suo est Jovis ira ; sed ilium 

Caeruleus frater juvat auxiliaribus undis. 275 

Convocat hie amnes : qui postquam tecta tyranni 

Intravere sui, Non est hortamine long'o 

Nunc, ait, utendum : vires effundite vestras — 

Sic opus est — aperite domos, ac mole remota 

Fluminibus vestris totas immittite habenas. 280 

Jusserat : hi redeunt, ac fontibus ora relaxant, 

Et defrenato volvuntur in aequora cursu. 

Ipse tridente suo terram percussit ; at ilia 

Intremuit motuque vias patefecit aquarum. 

Exspatiata ruunt per apertos flumina campos, 285 

Cumque satis arbusta simul pecudesque virosque 

Tectaque, cumque suis rapiunt penetralia sacris. 

Si qua domus mansit potuitque resistere tanto 

Indejecta malo, culmen tamen altior hujus 

Unda tegit, -pressaeque latent sub gurgite turres. 290 

Jamque mare et tellus nullum discrimen habebant : 

Omnia pontus erat ; deerant quoque litora ponto. 



METAMORPH. LIB. I. 7 

Occupat hie collem \ cymba sedet alter adunca 

Et ducit remos illic, ubi nuper ararat ; 

Ille super segetes aut mersae culmina villae 295 

Navigat ; hie summa piscem deprendit in ulmo. 

Figitur in viridi, si fors tulit, ancora prato, 

Aut subjecta terunt curvae vineta carinae ; 

Et, modo qua graciles gramen carpsere capellae, 

Nunc ibi deformes ponunt sua corpora phocae. 30° 

Mirantur sub aqua lucos urbesque domosque 

Nereides, silvasque tenent delphines et altis 

Incursant ramis agitataque robora pulsant. 

Nat lupus inter oves, fulvos vehit unda leones, 

Unda vehit tigres, nee vires fulminis apro 305 

Crura nee ablato prosunt velocia cervo, 

Quaesitisque diu terris, ubi sistere possit, 

In mare lassatis volucris vaga decidit alis. 

Obruerat tumulos immensa licentia ponti, 

Pulsabantque novi montana cacumina fluctus. 310 

Maxima pars unda rapitur ; quibus unda pepercit, 

Illos longa domant inopi jejunia victu. 

Separat Aonios Oetaeis Phocis ab arvis, 
Terra ferax, dum terra fuit, sed tempore in illo 
Pars maris et latus subitarum campus aquarum. 315 

Mons ibi verticibus petit arduus astra duobus, 
Nomine Parnasus, superatque cacumine nubes. 
Hie ubi Deucalion — nam cetera texerat aequor — 
Cum consorte tori parva rate vectus adhaesit, 
Corycidas Nymphas et numina montis adorant 320 

Fatidicamque Themin, quae tunc oracla tenebat. 
Non illo melior quisquam nee amantior aequi 
Vir fuit, aut ilia metuentior ulla deorum. 
Jupiter ut liquidis stagnare paludibus orbem, 
Et superesse videt de tot modo millibus unura, 325 

Et superesse videt de tot modo millibus unam, 
Innocuos ambos, cultores numinis ambos, 
Nubila disjecit, nimbisque aquilone remotis 



8 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Et coelo terras ostendit et aethera terris. 

Nee maris ira manet, positoque tricuspide telo 330 

Mulcet aquas rector pelagi, supraque profundum 

Exstantem atque humeros innato murice tectum 

Caeruleum Tritona vocat, conchaeque sonanti 

Inspirare jubet fluctusque et flumina signo 

Jam revocare dato. Cava buccina sumitur illi 335 

Tortilis, in latum quae turbine crescit ab imo, 

Buccina, quae medio concepit ubi aera ponto, 

Litora voce replet sub utroque jacentia Phoebo. 

Tunc quoque, ut ora dei madida rorantia barba 

Contigit et cecinit jussos inflata receptus, 340 

Omnibus audita est telluris et aequoris undis, 

Et quibus est undis audita, coercuit omnes. 

Jam mare litus habet, plenos capit alveus amnes, 

Flumina subsidunt collesque exire videntur, 

Surgit humus, crescunt loca decrescentibus undis, 345 

Postque diem longam nudata cacumina silvae 

Ostendunt limumque tenent in fronde relictum. 

Redditus orbis erat. Quern postquam vidit apertum, 
Et desolatas agere alta silentia terras, 
Deucalion lacrimis ita Pyrrham affatur obortis : 350 

O soror, O conjux, O femina sola superstes, 
Quam commune mihi genus et patruelis origo, 
Deinde torus junxit, nunc ipsa pericula jungunt, 
Terrarum, quascumque vident occasus et ortus, 
Nos duo turba sumus : possedit cetera pontus. 355 

Haec quoque adhuc vitae non est fiducia nostrae 
Certa satis : terrent etiam nunc nubila mentem. 
Quid tibi, si sine me fatis erepta fuisses, 
Nunc animi, miseranda, foret ? Quo sola timorem 
Ferre modo posses ; quo consolante doleres ? 360 

Namque ego — crede mihi — si te quoque pontus haberet, 
Te sequerer, conjux, et me quoque pontus haberet. 
O utinam possem populos reparare paternis 
Artibus, atque animas formatae infundere terrae ! 



METAMORPH. LIB. I. 9 

Nunc genus in nobis restat mortale duobus — 365 

Sic visum superis — hominumque exempla manemus. 

Dixerat, et flebant Placuit coeleste precari 

Numen, et auxilium per sacras quaerere sortes. 

Nulla mora est : adeunt pariter Cephisidas undas, 

Ut nondum liquidas sic jam vada nota secantes. 370 

Inde ubi libatos irroravere liquores 

Vestibus et capiti, flectunt vestigia sanctae 

Ad delubra deae, quorum fastigia turpi 

Pallebant musco, stabantque sine ignibus arae. 

Ut templi tetigere gradus, procumbit uterque 375 

Pronus humi gelidoque pavens dedit oscula saxo, 

Atque ita, Si precibus, dixerunt, numina justis 

Victa remollescunt, si flectitur ira deorum, 

Die, Themi, qua generis damnum reparabile nostri 

Arte sit, et mersis fer opem, mitissima, rebus. 380 

Mota dea est, sortemque dedit : Discedite templo, 

Et velate caput cinctasque resolvite vestes, 

Ossaque post tergum magnae jactate parentis. 

Obstupuere diu, rumpitque silentia voce 

Pyrrha prior jussisque deae parere recusat, 385 

Detque sibi veniam, pavido rogat ore, pavetque 

Laedere jactatis maternas ossibus umbras. 

Interea repetunt caecis obscura latebris 

Verba datae sortis secum inter seque volutant : 

Inde Promethiades placidis Epimethida dictis 390 

Mulcet et, Aut fallax, ait, est sollertia nobis, 

Aut pia sunt nullumque nefas oracula suadent. 

Magna parens terra est, lapides in corpore terrae 

Ossa reor dici : jacere hos post terga jubemur. 

Conjugis augurio quanquam Titania mota est, 395 

Spes tamen in dubio est : adeo coelestibus ambo 

Diffidunt monitis ; sed quid tentare nocebit ? 

Discedunt, velantque caput tunicasque recingunt, 

Et jussos lapides sua post vestigia mittunt. 

Saxa — quis hoc credat, nisi sit pro teste vetustas ? — 4 oo 



IO P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Ponere duritiem coepere suumque rigorem, 

Mollirique mora mollitaque ducere formam. 

Mox, ubi creverunt naturaque mitior illis 

Contigit, ut quaedam sic non manifesta videri 

Forma potest hominis, sed, uti de marmore coepta, 405 

Non exacta satis rudibusque simillima signis. 

Quae tamen ex illis aliquo pars humida suco, 

Et terrena fuit, versa est in corporis usum ; 

Quod solidum est flectique nequit, mutatur in ossa ; 

Quae modo vena fuit, sub eodem nomine mansit. 410 

Inque brevi spatio superorum numine saxa 

Missa viri manibus faciem traxere virorum, 

Et de femineo reparata est femina jactu. 

Inde genus durum sumus experiensque laborum, 

Et documenta damus, qua simus origine natL 415 



LIBER II. 

Regia Solis erat sublimibus alta columnis, 
Clara micante auro flammasque imitante pyropo, 
Cujus ebur nitidum fastigia summa tenebat, 
Argenti bifores radiabant lumine valvae. 
Materiem superabat opus : nam Mulciber illic 
Aequora caelarat medias cingentia terras, 
Terrarumque orbem, coelumque quod imminet orbi. 
Caeruleos habet unda deos, Tritona canorum, 
Proteaque ambiguum, balaenarumque prementem 
Aegaeona suis immania terga lacertis, 
Doridaque et natas, quarum pars nare videntur, 
Pars in mole sedens virides siccare capillos, 
Pisce vehi quaedam ; facies non omnibus una, 
Nee diversa tamen : qualem decet esse sororum. 
Terra viros urbesque gerit silvasque ferasque 



METAMORPH. LIB. II. II 

Fluminaque et nymphas et cetera numina ruris. 

Haec super imposita est coeli fulgentis imago, 

Signaque sex foribus dextris totidemque sinistris. 

Quo simul acclivo Clymeneia limite proles 

Venit, et intra vit dubitati tecta parentis, 20 

Protinus ad patrios sua fert vestigia vultus, 

Consistitque procul : neque enim propiora ferebat 

Lumina. Purpurea velatus veste sedebat 

In solio Phoebus Claris lucente smaragdis. 

A dextra laevaque Dies et Mensis et Annus 25 

Saeculaque et positae spatiis aequalibus Horae, 

Verque novum stabat cinctum florente corona ; 

Stabat nuda Aestas et spicea serta gerebat ; 

Stabat et Autumnus calcatis sordidus uvis, 

Et glacialis Hiems, canos hirsuta capillos. 30 

Inde loco medius rerum novitate paventem 

Sol oculis juvenem, quibus adspicit omnia, vidit, 

Quaeque viae tibi causa ? quid hac, ait, arce petisti, 

Progenies, Phaethon, haud infitianda parenti ? 

Ille refert : O lux immensi publica mundi, 35 

Phoebe pater, si das hujus mihi nominis usum 

Nee falsa Clymene culpam sub imagine celat, 

Pignora da, genitor, per quae tua vera propago 

Credar, et hunc animis errorem detrahe nostris. 

Dixerat ; at genitor circum caput omne micantes, 40 

Deposuit radios propiusque accedere jussit, 

Amplexuque dato, Nee tu meus esse negari 

Dignus es, et Clymene veros, ait, edidit ortus ; 

Quoque minus dubites, quodvis pete munus, et illud 

Me tribuente feres : promissi testis adesto 45 

Dis juranda palus, oculis incognita nostris. 

Vix bene desierat, currus petit ille paternos 

Inque diem alipedum jus et moderamen equorum. 

Poenituit jurasse patrem, qui terque quaterque 

Concutiens illustre caput, Temeraria, dixit, 5° 

Vox mea facta tua est. Utinam promissa liceret 



12 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Non dare ! Confiteor, solum hoc tibi, nate, negarem, 

Dissuadere licet. Non est tua tuta voluntas. 

Magna petis, Phaethon, et quae nee viribus istis 

Munera conveniunt nee tarn puerilibus annis. 55 

Sors tua mortalis : non est mortale, quod optas. 

Plus etiam, quam quod superis contingere fas est, 

Nescius affectas. Placeat sibi quisque licebit ; 

Non tamen ignifero quisquam consistere in axe 

Me valet excepto. Vasti quoque rector Olympi, 60 

Qui fera terribili jaculatur fulmina dextra, 

Non agat hos currus : et quid Jove majus habemus ? 

Ardua prima via est et qua vix mane recentes 

Enituntur equi. Medio est altissima coelo ; 

Unde mare et terras ipsi mihi saepe videre 65 

Fit timor, et pavida trepidat formidine pectus. 

Ultima prona via est, et eget moderamine certo. 

Tunc etiam, quae me subjectis excipit undis, 

Ne ferar in praeceps, Tethys solet ipsa vereri. 

Adde quod assidua rapitur vertigine coelum, 70 

Sideraque alta trahit celerique volumine torquet. 

Nitor in adversum, nee me, qui cetera, vincit 

Impetus, et rapido contrarius evehor orbi. 

Finge datos currus. Quid ages ? Poterisne rotatis 

Obvius ire polis, ne te citus auferat axis ? 75 

Forsitan et lucos illic urbesque deorum 

Concipias animo delubraque ditia donis 

Esse. Per insidias iter est formasque ferarum. 

Utque viam teneas nulloque errore traharis, 

Per tamen adversi gradieris cornua Tauri, 80 

Haemoniosque arcus, violentique ora Leonis, 

Saevaque circuitu curvantem brachia longo 

Scorpion, atque aliter curvantem brachia Cancrum. 

Nee tibi quadrupedes animosos ignibus illis, 

Quos in pectore habent, quos ore et naribus efflant, 85 

In promtu regere est : vix me patiuntur, ubi acres 

Incaluere animi, cervixque repugnat habenis. 



METAMORPH. LIB. II. 13 

At tu, funesti ne sim tibi muneris auctor, 

Nate, cave, dum resque sinit, tua corrige vota. 

Scilicet, ut nostro genitum te sanguine credas, 90 

Pignora certa petis : do pignora certa timendo, 

Et patrio pater esse metu probor. Adspice vultus 

Ecce meos, utinamque oculos in pectora posses 

Inserere et patrias intus deprendere curas ! 

Denique quicquid habet dives, circumspice, mundus, 95 

Eque tot ac tantis coeli terraeque marisque 

Posce bonis aliquid : nullam patiere repulsam. 

Deprecor hoc unum, quod vero nomine poena, 

Non honor est. Poenam, Phaethon, pro munere poscis. 

Quid mea colla tenes blandis, ignare, lacertis ? 100 

Ne dubita : dabitur — Stygias juravimus undas — 

Quodcumque optaris ; sed tu sapientius opta. 

Finierat monitus ; dictis tamen ille repugnat, 
Propositumque premit flagratque cupidine currus. 
Ergo, qua licuit, genitor cunctatus, ad altos 105 

Deducit juvenem, Vulcania munera, currus. 
Aureus axis erat, temo aureus, aurea summae 
Curvatura rotae, radiorum argenteus ordo ; 
Per juga chrysolithi positaeque ex ordine gemmae 
Clara repercusso reddebant lumina Phoebo. no 

Dumque ea magnanimus Phaethon- miratur opusque 
Perspicit, ecce vigil rutilo patefecit ab ortu 
Purpureas Aurora fores et plena rosarum 
Atria. Diffugiunt steilae, quarum agmina cogit 
Lucifer et coeli statione novissimus exit. n 5 

At pater, ut terras mundumque rubescere vidit 
Cornuaque extremae velut evanescere Lunae, 
Jungere equos Titan velocibus imperat Horis. 
Jussa deae celeres peragunt, ignemque vomentes, 
Ambrosiae suco saturos, praesepibus altis 120 

Quadrupedes ducunt, adduntque sonantia frena. 
Turn pater ora sui sacro medicamine nati 
Contigit et rapidae fecit patientia flammae, 



14 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Imposuitque comae radios, praesagaque luctus 

Pectore sollicito repetens suspiria dixit : 125 

Si potes his saltern monitis parere parentis, 

Parce, puer, stimulis, et fortius utere loris : 

Sponte sua properant ; labor est inhibere volentes. 

Nee tibi directos placeat via quinque per arcus. 

Sectus in obliquum est lato curvamine limes, 130 

Zonarumque trium contentus fine polumque 

Effugit australem junctamque aquilonibus Arcton. 

Hac sit iter ; manifesta rotae vestigia cernes. 

Utque ferant aequos et coelum et terra calores, 

Nee preme nee summum molire per aethera currum : 135 

Altius egressus coelestia tecta cremabis, 

Inferius terras ; medio tutissimus ibis. 

Neu te dexterior tortum declinet ad Anguem, 

Neve sinisterior pressam rota ducat ad Aram : 

Inter utrumque tene. Fortunae cetera mando, 140 

Quae juvet et melius quam tu tibi consulat, opto. 

Dum loquor, Hesperio positas in litore metas 

Humida nox tetigit. Non est mora libera nobis ; 

Poscimur, et fulget tenebris Aurora fugatis. 

Corripe lora manu, vel, si mutabile pectus 145 

Est tibi, consiliis, non curribus utere nostris, 

Dum potes et solidis etiam nunc sedibus adstas, 

Dumque male optatos nondum premis inscius axes. 

Quae tutus spectes, sine me dare lumina terris. 

Occupat ille levem juvenili corpore currum, 150 

Statque super manibusque datas contingere habenas 

Gaudet, et invito grates agit inde parenti. 

Interea volucres, Pyroeis, Eous, et Aethon, 

Solis equi, quartusque Phlegon, hinnitibus auras 

Flammiferis implent pedibusque repagula pulsant. 155 

Quae postquam Tethys, fatorum ignara nepotis, 

Repulit, et facta est immensi copia mundi, 

Corripuere viam, pedibusque per aera motis 

Obstantes scindunt nebulas, pennisque levari 



METAMORPH. LIB. II. 1 5 

Praetereunt ortos isdem de partibus Euros. 160 

Sed leve pondus erat, nee quod cognoscere possent 

Solis equi, solitaque jugum gravitate carebat ; 

Utque labant curvae justo sine pondere naves, 

Perque mare in stabiles nimia levitate feruntur, 

Sic onere assueto vacuus dat in aera saltus 165 

Succutiturque alte similisque est currus inani. 

Quod simulac sensere, ruunt tritumque relinquunt 

Quadrijugi spatium, nee, quo prius, ordine currunt. 

Ipse pavet, nee qua commissas flectat habenas, 

Nee scit qua sit iter, nee, si sciat, imperet illis. 170 

Turn primum radiis gelidi caluere Triones, 

Et vetito frustra tentarunt aequore tingi ; 

Quaeque polo posita est glaciali proxima Serpens, 

Frigore pigra prius nee formidabilis ulli, 

Incaluit sumsitque novas fervoribus iras. 17s 

Te quoque turbatum memorant fugisse, Boote, 

Quamvis tardus eras et te tua Plaustra tenebant. 

Ut vero summo despexit ab aethere terras 

Infelix Phaethon penitus penitusque jacentes, 

Palluit et subito genua intremuere timore, 180 

Suntque oculis tenebrae per tantum lumen obortae. 

Et jam mallet equos nunquam tetigisse paternos ; 

Jam cognosse genus piget, et valuisse rogando ; 

Jam Meropis dici cupiens, ita fertur, ut acta 

Praecipiti pinus borea, cui victa remisit 185 

Frena suus rector, quam dis votisque reliquit. 

Quid faciat ? Multum coeli post terga relictum, 

Ante oculos plus est : animo metitur utrumque, 

Et modo, quos illi fatum contigere non est, 

Prospicit occasus, interdum respicit ortus ; 190 

Quidque agat ignarus, stupet, et nee frena remittit 

Nee retinere valet, nee nomina novit equorum ; 

Sparsa quoque in vario passim miracula coelo 

Vastarumque videt trepidus simulacra ferarum. 

Est locus, in geminos ubi brachia concavat arcus 195 



1 6 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Scorpios, et Cauda flexisque utrimque lacertis 

Porrigit in spatium signorum membra duorum. 

Hunc puer ut nigri madidum sudore veneni 

Vulnera curvata minitantem cuspid e vidit, 

Mentis inops gelida formidine lora remisit. 200 

Quae postquam summo sensere jacentia tergo, 

Exspatiantur equi, nulloque inhibente per auras 

Ignotae regionis eunt, quaque impetus egit, 

Hac sine lege ruunt, altoque sub aethere fixis 

Incursant stellis rapiuntque per avia currum, 205 

Et modo summa petunt, modo per decliva viasque 

Praecipites spatio terrae propiore feruntur. 

Inferiusque suis fraternos currere Luna 

Admiratur equos, ambustaque nubila fumant ; 

Corripitur flammis, ut quaeque altissima, tellus, 210 

Fissaque agit rimas et sucis aret ademtis ; 

Pabula canescunt, cum frondibus uritur arbos, 

Materiamque suo praebet seges arida damno. 

Parva queror : magnae pereunt cum moenibus urbes, 

Cumque suis totas populis incendia gentes 2 I5 

In cinerem vertunt. Silvae cum montibus ardent : 

Ardet Athos Taurusque Cilix et Tmolus et Oete, 

Et tunc sicca, prius celeberrima fontibus, Ide, 

Virgineusque Helicon et nondum Oeagrius Haemos ; 

Ardet in immensum geminatis ignibus Aetne, 220 

Parnasusque biceps et Eryx et Cynthus et Othrys, 

Et tandem Rhodope nivibus caritura, Mimasque 

Dindymaque et Mycale natusque ad sacra Cithaeron ; 

Nee prosunt Scythiae sua frigora : Caucasus ardet, 

Ossaque cum Pindo majorque ambobus Olympus, 225 

Aeriaeque Alpes et nubifer Apenninus. 

Turn vero Phaethon cunctis e partibus orbem 

Adspicit accensum, nee tantos sustinet aestus, 

Ferventesque auras velut e fornace profunda 

Ore trahit, currusque suos candescere sentit ; 230 

Et neque jam cineres ejectatamque favillam 



METAMORPH. LIB. II. 1 7 

Ferre potest^ calidoque involvitur undique fumo ; 

Quoque eat aut ubi sit, picea caligine tectus 

Nescit, et arbitrio volucrum raptatur equorum. 

Sanguine tunc credunt in corpora summa vocato 235 

Aethiopum populos nigrum traxisse colorem ; 

Tunc facta est Libye raptis humoribus aestu 

Arida \ tunc Nymphae passis fontesque lacusque 

Deflevere comis : quaerit Boeotia Dircen, 

Argos Amymonen, Ephyre Pirenidas undas. 240 

Nee sortita loco distantes flumina ripas 

Tuta manent : mediis Tanais fumavit in undis, 

Peneosque senex Teuthranteusque Caicus 

Et celer Ismenos cum Psophideo Erymantho, 

Arsurusque iterum Xanthus flavusque Lycormas, 245 

Quique recurvatis ludit Maeandros in undis, 

Mygdoniusque Melas et Taenarius Eurotas ; 

Arsit et Euphrates Babylonius, arsit Orontes, 

Thermodonque citus Gangesque et Phasis et Ister ; 

Aestuat Alpheos, ripae Spercheides ardent ; 250 

Quodque suo Tagus amne vehit, fluit ignibus, aurum ; 

Et, quae Maeonias celebrabant carmine ripas, 

Flumineae volucres medio caluere Caystro. 

Nilus in extremum fugit perterritus orbem, 

Occuluitque caput, quod adhuc latet : ostia septem 255 

Pulverulenta vacant septem sine flumine valles. 

Fors eadem Ismarios, Hebrum cum Strymone, siccat 

Hesperiosque amnes, Rhenum Rhodanumque Padumque, 

Cuique fuit rerum promissa potentia, Thybrin. 

Dissilit omne solum, penetratque in Tartara rimis 260 

Lumen et infernum terret cum conjuge regem ; 

Et mare contrahitur, siccaeque est campus arenae 

Quod modo pontus erat, quosque altum texerat aequor, 

Exsistunt montes et sparsas Cycladas augent. 

Ima petunt pisces, nee se super aequora curvi 265 

Tollere consuetas audent delphines in auras. 

Corpora phocarum summo resupina profundo 



1 8 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Exanimata natant. Ipsum quoque Nerea fama est 

Doridaque et natas tepidis latuisse sub antris. 

Ter Neptunus aquis cum torvo brachia vultu 270 

Exserere ausus erat, ter non tulit aeris ignes. 

Alma tamen Tellus, ut erat circumdata ponto, 

Inter aquas pelagi contractosque undique fontes, 

Qui se condiderant in opacae viscera matris, 

Sustulit omniferos collo tenus arida vultus, 275 

Opposuitque manum fronti, magnoque tremore 

Omnia concutiens paullum subsedit et infra, 

Quam solet esse, fuit, siccaque ita voce locuta est : 

Si placet hoc meruique, quid o tua fulmina cessant, 

Summe deum ? Liceat periturae viribus ignis 280 

Igne perire tuo, clademque auctore levare. 

Vix equidem fauces haec ipsa in verba resolvo : — 

Presserat ora vapor : — tostos en adspice crines, 

Inque oculis tantum, tantum super ora favillae. 

Hosne mihi fructus, hunc fertilitatis honorem 285 

Officiique refers, quod adunci vulnera aratri 

Rastrorumque fero, totoque exerceor anno, 

Quod pecori frondes, alimentaque mitia, fruges, 

Humano generi, vobis quoque tura ministro ? 

Sed tamen exitium fac me meruisse : quid undae, 290 

Quid meruit frater ? Cur illi tradita sorte 

Aequora decrescunt et ab aethere longius absunt ? 

Quod si nee fratris nee te mea gratia tangit, 

At coeli miserere tui. Circumspice utrumque : 

Fumat uterque polus ; quos si vitiaverit. ignis, 295 

Atria vestra ruent. Atlas en ipse laborat, 

Vixque suis humeris candentem sustinet axem. 

Si freta, si terrae pereunt, si regia coeli, 

In chaos antiquum confundimur. Eripe flammis, 

Si quid adhuc superest, et rerum consule summae. 300 

Dixerat haec Tellus ; neque enim tolerare vaporem 

Ulterius potuit nee dicere plura ; suumque 

Retulit os in se propioraque manibus antra. 



METAMORPH. LIB. II. 1 9 

At pater omnipotens superos testatus et ipsum, 

Qui dederat currus, nisi opem ferat, omnia fato 305 

Interitura gravi, summam petit arduus arcem, 

Unde solet nubes latis inducere terris, 

Unde movet tonitrus vibrataque fulmina jactat. 

Sed neque, quas posset terris inducere, nubes 

Tunc habuit, nee, quos coelo dimitteret, imbres. 310 

Intonat, et dextra libratum fulmen ab aure 

Misit in aurigam, pariterque animaque rotisque 

Expulit, et saevis compescuit ignibus ignes. 

Consternantur equi, et saltu in contraria facto 

Colla jugo eripiunt abruptaque lora'relinquunt. 315 

Illic frena jacent, illic temone revulsus 

Axis, in hac radii fractarum parte rotarum, 

Sparsaque sunt late laceri vestigia currus. 

At Phaethon, rutilos flamma populante capillos, 

Volvitur in praeceps longoque per aera tractu 320 

Fertur, ut interdum de coelo stella sereno, 

Etsi non cecidit, potuit cecidisse videri. 

Quern procul a patria diverso maximus orbe 

Excipit Eridanus, fumantiaque abluit ora. 

Naides Hesperiae triflda fumantia flamma 325 

Corpora dant tumulo, signant quoque carmine saxum : 

Hie situs est Phaethon, currus auriga paterni : 

Quem si non tenuit, magnis tamen excidit ausis. 

Nam pater obductos, luctu miserabilis aegro, 

Condiderat vultus ; et si modo credimus, unum 33 o 

Isse diem sine sole ferunt. Incendia lumen 

Praebebant, aliquisque malo fuit usus in illo. 

At Clymene, postquam dixit quaecunque fuerunt 

In tantis dicenda malis, lugubris et amens 

Et laniata sinus totum percensuit orbem, 335 

Exanimesque artus primo, mox ossa requirens, 

Reperit ossa tamen peregrina condita ripa, 

Incubuitque loco, nomenque in marmore lectum 

Perfudit lacrimis et aperto pectore fovit. 



20 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Nec minus Heliades fletus et, inania morti 340 

Munera, dant lacrimas, et caesae pectora palmis 
Non auditurum miseras Phaethonta querelas 
Nocte dieque vocant, adsternunturque sepulcro. 
Luna quater junctis implerat cornibus orb em : 
Illae more suo — nam morem fecerat usus — 345 

Plangorem dederant. E quis Phaethusa, sororum 
Maxima, quum vellet terrae procumbere, questa est 
Diriguisse pedes ; ad quam cohata venire 
Candida Lampetie, subita radice retenta est ; 
Tertia, quum crinem manibus laniare pararet, 350 

Avellit frondes ; haec stipite crura teneri, 
Ilia dolet fieri longos sua brachia ramos. 
Dumque ea mirantur, complectitur inguina cortex, 
Perque gradus uterum pectusque humerosque manusque 
Ambit, et exstabant tantum ora vocantia matrem. 355 

Quid faciat mater, nisi, quo trahat impetus illam, 
Hue eat atque illuc, et, dum licet, oscula jungat ? 
Non satis est : truncis avellere corpora tentat 
Et teneros manibus ramos abrumpit ; at inde 
Sanguineae manant tanquam de vulnere guttae. 360 

Parce, precor, mater, quaecunque est saucia clamat, 
Parce, precor : nostrum laceratur in arbore corpus. 
Jamque vale. — Cortex in verba novissima venit. 
Inde fluunt lacrimae, stillataque sole rigescunt 
De ramis electra novis, quae lucidus amnis 365 

Excipit et nuribus mittit gestanda Latinis. 

AfTuit huic monstro proles Stheneleia Cygnus, 
Qui tibi materno quam vis a sanguine junctus, 
Mente tamen, Phaethon, propior fuit. Ille relicto — 
Nam Ligurum populos et magnas rexerat urbes — 37° 

Imperio ripas virides amnemque querelis 
Eridanum implerat silvamque sororibus auctam ; 
Quum vox est tenuata viro, canaeque capillos 
Dissimulant plumae, collumque a pectore longe 
Porrigitur digitosque ligat junctura rubentes, 37s 



METAMORPH. LIB. III. 21 

Penna latus velat, tenet os sine acumine rostrum. 

Fit nova Cygnus avis, nee se coeloque Jovique 

Credit, ut injuste missi memor ignis ab illo : 

Stagna petit patulosque lacus, ignemque perosus, 

Quae colat, elegit contraria flumina rlammis. 380 

Squalidus interea genitor Phaethontis et expers 
Ipse sui decoris, qualis, quum deficit orbem, 
Esse solet, lucemque odit seque ipse diemque, 
Datque animum in luctus, et luctibus adjicit iram, 
Officiumque negat mundo. Satis, inquit, ab aevi 385 

Sors mea principiis fuit irrequieta, pigetque 
Actorum sine fine mihi, sine honore, laborum. 
Quilibet alter agat portantes lumina currus. 
Si nemo est, omnesque dei non posse fatentur, 
Ipse agat, ut saltern, dum nostras tentat habenas, 390 

Orbatura patres aliquando fulmina ponat. 
Turn sciet, ignipedum vires expertus equorum, 
Non meruisse necem, qui non bene rexerit illos. 
Talia dicentem circumstant omnia Solem 
Numina, neve velit tenebras inducere rebus, 395 

Supplice voce rogant ; missos quoque Jupiter ignes 
Excusat, precibusque minas regaliter addit. 
Colligit amentes et adhuc terrore paventes 
Phoebus equos, stimuloque dolens et verbere saevit ; 
Saevit enim, natumque objectat et imputat illis. 400 



LIBER III. 

Jamque deus posita fallacis imagine tauri 
Se confessus erat, Dictaeaque rura tenebat ; 
Quum pater ignarus raptam perquirere Cadmo 
Imperat, et poenam, si non invenerit, addit 
Exsilium, facto pius et sceleratus eodem. 



2 2 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Orbe pererrato — quis enim deprendere possit 

Furta Jovis ? — profugus patriamque iramque parentis 

Vitat Agenorides, Phoebique oracula supplex 

Consulit et, quae sit tellus habitanda, requirit. 

Bos tibi, Phoebus ait, solis occurret in arvis, 10 

Nullum passa jugum curvique immunis aratri : 

Hac duce carpe vias et, qua requieverit herba, 

Moenia fac condas, Boeotiaque ilia vocato. 

Vix bene Castalio Cadmus descenderat antro, 

Incustoditam lente videt ire juvencam, 15 

Nullum servitii signum cervice gerentem. 

Subsequitur pressoque legit vestigia gressu, 

Auctoremque viae Phoebum taciturnus adorat. 

Jam vada Cephisi Panopesque evaserat arva : 

Bos stetit et, tollens spatiosam cornibus altis 20 

Ad coelum frontem, mugitibus impulit auras, 

Atque ita, respiciens comites sua terga sequentes, 

Procubuit teneraque latus submisit in herba. 

Cadmus agit grates, peregrinaeque oscula terrae 

Figit et ignotos montes agrosque salutat. 25 

Sacra Jovi facturus erat : jubet ire ministros 

Et petere e vivis libandas fontibus undas. 

Silva vetus stabat, nulla violata securi, 

Et specus in medio, virgis ac vimine densus, 

Efficiens humilem lapidum compagibus arcum, 30 

Uberibus fecundus aquis : ubi conditus antro 

Martius anguis erat, cristis praesignis et auro ; 

Igne micant oculi, corpus tumet omne veneno, 

Tresque vibrant linguae, triplici stant ordine dentes. 

Quem postquam Tyria lucum de gente profecti 35 

Infausto tetigere gradu, demissaque in undas 

Urna dedit sonitum, longo caput extulit antro 

Caeruleus serpens horrendaque sibila misit. 

Effluxere urnae manibus, sanguisque reliquit 

Corpus et attonitos subitus tremor occupat artus. 40 

Ille volubilibus squamosos nexibus orbes 



METAMORPH. LIB. III. 23 

Torquet, et immensos saltu sinuatur in arcus, 

Ac media plus parte leves erectus in auras 

Despicit omne nemus, tantoque est corpore, quanto, 

Si totum spectes, geminas qui separat Arctos. 45 

Nee mora ; Phoenicas, sive illi tela parabant 

Sive fugam, sive ipse timor prohibebat utrumque, 

Occupat : hos morsu, longis amplexibus illos, 

Hos necat afflati funesta tabe veneni. 

Fecerat exiguas jam sol altissimus umbras : 50 

Quae mora sit sociis miratur Agenore natus, 
Vestigatque viros. Tegimen direpta leoni 
Pellis erat, telum splendenti lancea ferro 
Et jaculum, teloque animus praestantior omni. 
Ut nemus intravit, letataque corpora vidit, 55 

Victoremque supra spatiosi corporis hostem 
Tristia sanguinea lambentem vulnera lingua, 
Aut ultor vestrae, fidissima corpora, mortis 
Aut comes, inquit, ero. Dixit, dextraque molarem 
Sustulit, et magnum magno conamine misit. 60 

Illius impulsu cum turribus ardua celsis 
Moenia mota forent ; serpens sine vulnere mansit, 
Loricaeque modo squamis defensus et atrae 
Duritia pellis, validos cute repulit ictus. 
At non duritia jaculum quoque vicit eadem : 65 

Quod medio lentae spinae curvamine fixum 
Constitit, et totum descendit in ilia ferrum. 
Ille, dolore ferox, caput in sua terga retorsit 
Vulneraque adspexit, fixumque hastile momordit, 
Idque, ubi vi multa partem labefecit in omnem, 70 

Vix tergo eripuit ; ferrum tamen ossibus haesit. 
Turn vero, postquam solitas accessit ad iras 
Causa recens, plenis tumuerunt guttura venis, 
Spumaque pestiferos circumfluit albida rictus, 
Terraque rasa sonat squamis, quique halitus exit 75 

Ore niger Stygio vitiatas inficit herbas. 
Ipse modo immensum spiris facientibus orbem 



24 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Cingitur ; interdum longa trabe rectior exstat ; 

Impete nunc vasto, ceu concitus imbribus amnis 

Fertur, et obstantes proturbat pectore silvas. 80 

Cedit Agenorides paullum, spolioque leonis 

Sustinet incursus, instantiaque ora retardat 

Cuspide praetenta. Furit ille, et inania duro 

Vulnera dat ferro, figitque in acumine dentes. 

J am que venenifero sanguis manare palato 8 5 

Coeperat, et virides adspergine tinxerat herbas ; 

Sed leve vulnus erat, quia se retrahebat ab ictu 

Laesaque colla dabat retro, plagamque sedere 

Cedendo arcebat nee longius ire sinebat : 

Donee Agenorides conjectum in gutture ferrum 90 

Usque sequens pressit, dum retro quercus eunti 

Obstitit, et fixa est pariter cum robore cervix. 

Pondere serpentis curvata est arbor, et imae 

Parte flagellari gemuit sua robora caudae. 

Dum spatium victor victi considerat hostis, 95 

Vox subito audita est : neque erat cognoscere promtum, 

Unde ; sed audita est : Quid, Agenore nate, peremtum 

Serpentem spectas ? Et tu spectabere serpens. 

Ille, diu pavidus, pariter cum mente colorem 

Perdiderat, gelidoque comae terrore rigebant. 100 

Ecce, viri fautrix, superas delapsa per auras 

Pallas adest, motaeque jubet supponere terrae 

Vipereos dentes, populi incrementa futuri. 

Paret et, ut presso sulcum patefecit aratro, 

Spargit humi jussos, mortalia semina, dentes. 105 

Inde, fide majus, glebae coepere moveri, 

Primaque de sulcis acies apparuit hastae, 

Tegmina mox capitum picto nutantia cono ; 

Mox humeri pectusque onerataque brachia telis 

Exsistunt, crescitque seges clypeata virorum. no 

Sic, ubi tolluntur festis aulaea theatris, 

Surgere sign a solent, primumque ostendere vultus 

Cetera paullatim, placidoque educta tenore 



METAMORPH. LIB. III. 25 

Tota patent, imoque pedes in margine ponunt. 
Territus hoste novo Cadmus capere arma parabat : «s 

Ne cape, de populo quem terra creaverat unus 
Exclamat, nee te civilibus insere bellis ! 
Atque ita terrigenis rigido de fratribus unum 
Cominus ense ferit ; jaculo cadit eminus ipse. 
Hie quoque, qui dederat leto, non longius illo 120 

Vivit, et exspirat, modo quas acceperat, auras ; 
Exemploque pari furit omnis turba, suoque 
Marte cadunt subiti per mutua vulnera fratres. 
Jamque brevis vitae spatium sortita juventus 
Sanguineam trepido plangebant pectore matrem, 125 

Quinque superstitibus, quorum fuit unus Echion. 
Is sua jecit humi monitu Tritonidis arma, 
Fraternaeque fidem pacis petiitque deditque. 
Hos operis comites habuit Sidonius hospes, 
Quum posuit jussam Phoebeis sortibus urbem. 130 

* * * * * 

Ille metu vacuus, Nomen mihi, dixit, Acoetes, 

Patria Maeonia est, humili de plebe parentes. 

Non mihi, quae duri colerent, pater, arva juvenci, 

Lanigerosve greges, non ulla armenta reliquit : 585 

Pauper et ipse fuit, linoque solebat et hamis 

De'cipere et calamo salientes ducere pisces ; 

Ars illi sua census erat. Quum traderet artem, 

Accipe quas habeo, studii successor et heres, 

Dixit, opes, moriensque mihi nihil ille reliquit 590 

Praeter aquas : unum hoc possum appellare paternum. 

Mox ego, ne scopulis haererem semper in isdem, 

Addidici regimen dextra moderante carinae 

Flectere, et Oleniae sidus pluviale Capellae 

Taygetenque Hyadasque oculis Arctonque notavi, 595 

Ventorumque domos et portus puppibus aptos. 

Forte petens Delon, Chiae telluris ad oras 

Applicor, et dextris adducor litora remis, 

Doque leves saltus udaeque immittor arenae. 



26 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Nox ubi consumta est — Aurora rubescere primum 600 

Coeperat — exsurgo, laticesque inferre recentes 

Admoneo, monstroque viam quae ducat ad undas. 

Ipse, quid aura mihi tumulo promittat ab alto 

Prospicio, comitesque voco repetoque carinam. 

Adsumus en ! inquit sociorum primus Opheltes, 605 

Utque putat, praedam deserto nactus in agro, 

Virginea puerum ducit per litora forma. 

Ille, mero somnoque gravis, titubare videtur, 

Vixque sequi. Specto cultum faciemque gradumque : 

Nil ibi, quod credi posset mortale, videbam ; 610 

Et sensi, et dixi sociis : Quod numen in isto 

Corpore sit, dubito ; sed corpore numen in isto est. 

Quisquis es, o faveas nostrisque laboribus adsis ; 

His quoque des veniam ! — Pro nobis mitte precari ! 

Dictys ait, quo non alius conscendere summas 615 

Ocior antennas, prensoque rudente relabi. 

Hoc Libys, hoc flavus, prorae tutela, Melanthus, 

Hoc probat Alcimedon et, qui requiemque modumque 

Voce dabat remis, animorum hortator Epopeus, 

Hoc omnes alii. Praedae tarn caeca cupido est. % 620 

Non tamen hanc sacro violari pondere pinum 

Perpetiar, dixi : pars hie mihi maxima juris. 

Inque aditu obsisto. Furit audacissimus omni 

De numero Lycabas, qui Tusca pulsus ab urbe 

Exsilium dira poenam pro caede luebat. 625 

Is mihi, dum resto, juvenili guttura pugno 

Rupit ; et excussum misisset in aequora, si non 

Haesissem, quamvis amens, in fune retentus. 

Impia turba probat factum. Turn denique Bacchus — 

Bacchus enim fuerat — veluti clamore solutus 630 

Sit sopor aque mero redeant in pectora sensus, 

Quid facitis ? Quis clamor ? ait, Qua, dicite, nautae, 

Hue ope perverri ? Quo me deferre paratis ? — 

Pone metum, Proreus, et quos contingere portus 

Ede velis, dixit : terra sistere petita. 6 35 



METAMORPH. LIB. III. 27 

Naxon, ait Liber, cursus advertite vestros : 

Ilia mihi domus est \ vobis erit hospita tellus. 

Per mare fallaces perque omnia numina jurant, 

Sic fore, meque jubent pictae dare vela carinae. 

Dextera Naxos erat : d extra mihi lintea danti, 6 4 o 

Quid facis, o demens ? Quis te furor, inquit, Acoete, 

Pro se quisque, tenet ? laevam pete ! Maxima nutu 

Pars mihi signincat, pars, quid velit, aure susurrat. 

Obstupui, Capiatque aliquis moderamina ! dixi, 

Meque ministerio scelerisque artisque removi. 6 45 

Increpor a cunctis, totumque immurmurat agmen ; 

E quibus Aethalion, Te scilicet omnis in uno 

Nostra salus posita est ! ait, et subit ipse meumque 

Explet opus, Naxoque petit diversa relicta. 

Turn deus illudens, tanquam modo denique fraudem 6 5 o 

Senserit, e puppi pontum prospectat adunca, 

Et flenti similis, Non haec mihi litora, nautae, 

Promisistis, ait ; non haec mihi terra rogata est 

Quo merui poenam facto ? Quae gloria vestra est, 

Si puerum juvenes, si multi fallitis unum ? 6 55 

Jamdudum flebam ; lacrimas manus impia nostras 

Ridet, et impellit properantibus aequora remis. 

Per tibi nunc ipsum — neque enim praesentior illo 

Est deus — adjuro, tarn me tibi vera referre, 

Quam veri majora fide : stetit aequore puppis 660 

Haud aliter, quam si siccum navale teneret. 

Illi admirantes remorum in verbere perstant, 

Velaque deducunt, geminaque ope currere tentant : 

Impediunt hederae remos, nexuque recurvo 

Serpunt et gravidis distringunt vela corymbis. 665 

Ipse, racemiferis frontem circumdatus uvis, 

Pampineis agitat velatam frondibus hastam ; 

Quern circa tigres simulacraque inania lyncum 

Pictarumque jacent fera corpora pantherarum. 

Exsiluere viri ; sive hoc insania fecit, 670 

Sive timor ; primusque Medon nigrescere pinnis 



28 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Corpore depresso, et spinae curvamina flecti 

Incipit. Huic Lycabas, In quae miracula, dixit, 

Verteris ? et lati rictus et panda loquenti 

Naris erat, squamamque cutis durata trahebat. 675 

At Libys, obstantes dum vult obvertere remos, 

In spatium resilire manus breve vidit, et illas 

Jam non esse manus, jam pinnas posse vocari. 

Alter, ad intortos cupiens dare brachia funes, 

Brachia non habuit, truncoque repandus in undas 680 

Corpore desiluit ; falcata novissima cauda est, 

Qualia dimidiae sinuantur cornua lunae. 

Undique dant saltus, multaque adspergine rorant, 

Emerguntque iterum redeuntque sub aequora rursus, 

Inque chori ludunt speciem lascivaque jactant 685 

Corpora, et acceptum patulis mare naribus efnant. 

De modo viginti — tot enim ratis ilia ferebat — 

Restabam solus. Pavidum gelidumque trementi 

Corpore, vixque meum firmat deus, Excute, dicens, 

Corde metum, Diamque tene ! Delatus in illam 690 

Accessi sacris Baccheaque festa frequento. 



LIBER IV. 

# # * * # 

Pyramus et Thisbe, juvenum pulcherrimus alter, 55 

Altera, quas Oriens habuit, praelata puellis, 
Contiguas tenuere domos, ubi dicitur altam 
Coctilibus muris cinxisse Semiramis urbem. 
Notitiam primosque gradus vicinia fecit, 
Tempore crevit amor : taedae quoque jure coissent ; 60 
Sed vetuere patres. Quod non potuere vetare, 
Ex aequo captis ardebant mentibus ambo. 
Conscius omnis abest : nutu signisque loquuntur ; ■ 



METAMORPH. LIB. IV. 29 

Quoque magis tegitur, tectus magis aestuat ignis. 

Fissus erat tenui rima, quam duxerat olim, 65 

Quum fieret, paries domui communis utrique : 

Id vitium nulli per saecula longa notatum — 

Quid non sentit amor ? — primi vidistis amantes, 

Et vocis fecistis iter, tutaeque per illud 

Murmure blanditiae minimo transire solebant. 70 

Saepe, ut constiterant hinc Thisbe, Pyramus illinc, 

Inque vices fuerat captatus anhelitus oris, 

Invide, dicebant, paries, quid amantibus obstas ? 

Quantum erat, ut sineres nos toto corpore jungi ; 

Aut hoc si nimium, vel ad oscula danda pateres ! 75 

Nee sumus ingrati : tibi nos debere fatemur, 

Quod datus est verbis ad arnicas transitus aures. 

Talia diversa nequicquam sede locuti, 

Sub noctem dixere vale, partique dedere 

Oscula quisque suae, non pervenientia contra. 80 

Postera nocturnos Aurora removerat ignes, 

Solque pruinosas radiis siccaverat herbas ; 

Ad solitum coiere locum. Turn murmure parvo 

Multa prius questi, statuunt, ut nocte silenti 

Fallere custodes foribusque excedere tentent, 85 

Quumque domo exierint, urbis quoque claustra relinquant ; 

Neve sit errandum lato spatiantibus arvo, 

Conveniant ad busta Nini, lateantque sub umbra 

Arboris : arbor ibi, niveis uberrima pomis, 

Ardua morus erat, gelido contermina fonri. 90 

Pacta placent, et lux, tarde discedere visa, 

Praecipitatur aquis, et aquis nox surgit ab isdem. 

Callida per tenebras versato cardine Thisbe 

Egreditur fallitque suos, adopertaque vultum 

Pervenit ad tumulum, dictaque sub arbore sedit. 95 

Audacem faciebat amor. Venit ecce recenti 

Caede leaena bourn spumantes oblita rictus, 

Depositura sitim vicini fontis in unda. 

Quam procul ad lunae radios Babylonia Thisbe 



30 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Vidit, et obscurum timido pede fugit in antrum, ioo 

Dumque fugit, tergo velamina lapsa reliquit. 

Ut lea saeva sitim multa compescuit unda, 

Dum redit in silvas, inventos forte sine ipsa 

Ore cruentato tenues laniavit amictus. 

Serius egressus vestigia videt in alto ic 5 

Pulvere certa ferae totoque expalluit ore 

Pyramus. Ut vero vestem quoque sanguine tinctam 

Reperit : Una duos, inquit, nox perdet amantes : 

E quibus ilia fuit longa dignissima vita ; 

Nostra nocens anima est : ego te, miseranda, peremi, no 

In loca plena metus qui jussi nocte venires, 

Nee prior hue veni. Nostrum divellite corpus, 

Et scelerata fero consumite viscera morsu, 

O quicumque sub hac habitatis rupe, leones ! 

Sed timidi est optare necem ! — Velamina Thisbes 115 

Tollit, et ad pactae secum fert arboris umbram ; 

Utque dedit notae lacrimas, dedit oscula, vesti, 

Accipe nunc, inquit, nostri quoque sanguinis haustus ! 

Quoque erat accinctus, demisit in ilia ferrum. 

Nee mora, ferventi moriens e vulnere traxit, 120 

Et jacuit resupinus humi : cruor emicat alte, 

Non aliter quam quum vitiato fistula plumbo 

Scinditur et tenui stridente foramine longas 

Ejaculatur aquas, atque ictibus aera rumpit. 

Arborei fetus adspergine caedis in atram 125 

Vertuntur faciem, madefactaque sanguine radix 

Puniceo tingit pendentia mora colore. 

Ecce metu nondum posito, ne fallat amantem, 

Ilia redit, juvenemque oculis animoque requirit, 

Quantaque vitarit narrare pericula gestit ; 130 

Utque locum et visam cognovit in arbore formam — 

Sic facit incertam pomi color — haeret, an haec sit. 

Dum dubitat, tremebunda videt pulsare cruentum 

Membra solum, retroque pedem tulit, oraque buxo 

Pallidiora gerens exhorruit aequoris instar, 135 



METAMORPH. LIB. IV. 3 1 

Quod fremit exigua quum summum stringitur aura. 

Sed postquam remorata suos cognovit amores, 

Percutit indignos claro plangore lacertos, 

Et, laniata comas amplexaque corpus amatum, 

Vulnera supplevit lacrimis fletumque cruori I40 

Miscuit, et gelidis in vultibus oscula figens, 

Pyrame, clamavit, quis te mihi casus ademit? 

Pyrame, responde : tua te carissima Thisbe 

Nominat ! Exaudi, vultusque attolle jacentes ! 

Ad nomen Thisbes oculos jam morte gravatos 145 

Pyramus erexit, visaque recondidit ilia. 

Quae postquam vestemque suam cognovit, et ense 

Vidit ebur vacuum, Tua te manus, inquit, amorque 

Perdidit, infelix. Est et mihi fortis in unum 

Hoc manus, est et amor ; dabit hie in vulnera vires. 150 

Persequar exstinctum, letique miserrima dicar 

Causa comesque tui ; quique a me morte revelli 

Heu sola poteras, poteris nee morte revelli. 

Hoc tamen amborum verbis estote rogati, 

O multum miseri, meus illiusque, parentes, 155 

Ut, quos certus amor, quos hora novissima junxit, 

Componi tumulo non invideatis eodem. 

At tu, quae ramis arbor miserabile corpus 

Nunc tegis unius, mox es tectura duorum, 

Signa tene caedis, pullosque et luctibus aptos 160 

Semper habe fetus, gemini monumenta cruoris. 

Dixit, et aptato pectus mucrone sub imum 

Incubuit ferro, quod adhuc a caede tepebat. 

Vota tamen tetigere deos, tetigere parentes : 

Nam color in porno est, ubi permaturuit, ater ; 165 

Quodque rogis superest, una requiescit in urna. 

# * * * # 

Sed tamen ambobus versae solatia formae 
Magna nepos dederat, quern debellata colebat 605 

India, quern positis celebrabat Achaia templis. 
Solus Abantiades ab origine cretus eadem 



32 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Acrisius superest, qui moenibus arceat urbis 

Argolicae, contraque deum ferat arma, genusque 

Non putet esse deum : neque enim Jovis esse putabat 610 

Persea, quern pluvio Danae conceperat auro. 

Mox tamen Acrisium — tanta est praesentia veri — 

Tarn violasse deum, quam non agnosse nepotem, 

Poenitet : impositus jam coelo est alter ; at alter, 

Viperei referens spolium memorabile monstri, 615 

Aera carpebat tenerum stridentibus alis. 

Quumque super Libycas victor penderet arenas, 

Gorgonei capitis guttae cecidere cruentae ; 

Quas humus exceptas varios animavit in angues : 

Unde frequens ilia est infestaque terra colubris. 620 

Inde per immensum ventis discordibus actus 

Nunc hue, nunc illuc, exemplo nubis aquosae 

Fertur, et ex alto seductas aethere longe 

Despectat terras, totumque supervolat orbem. 

Ter gelidas Arctos, ter Cancri brachia vidit ; 625 

Saepe sub occasus, saepe est ablatus in ortus ; 

Jamque cadente die veritus se credere nocti 

Constitit Hesperio, regnis Atlantis, in orbe, 

Exiguamque petit requiem, dum Lucifer ignes 

Evocet Aurorae, cursus Aurora diurnos. 630 

Hie, hominum cunctos ingenti corpore praestans, 

Iapetionides Atlas fuit. Ultima tellus' 

Rege sub hoc et pontus erat, qui Solis anhelis 

Aequora subdit equis et fessos excipit axes. 

Mille greges illi totidemque armenta per herbas 6 35 

Errabant, et humum vicinia nulla premebant ; 

Arboreae frondes auro radiante nitentes 

Ex auro ramos, ex auro poma tegebant. 

Hospes, ait Perseus illi, seu gloria tangit 

Te generis magni, generis mihi Jupiter auctor ; 640 

Sive es mirator rerum, mirabere nostras : 

Hospitium, requiemque peto. Memor ille vetustae. 

Sortis erat : Themis hanc dederat Parnasia sortem : 



METAMORPH. LIB. IV. 33 

Tempus, Atla, veniet, tua quo spoliabitur auro 

Arbor •> et hunc praedae titulum Jove natus habebit. 6 45 

Id metuens, solidis pomaria clauserat Atlas 

Moenibus et vasto dederat servanda draconi, 

Arcebatque suis externos finibus omnes. 

Huic quoque, Vade procul, ne longe gloria rerum, 

Quas mentiris, ait, longe tibi Jupiter absit ! 650 

Vimque minis addit, manibusque expellere tentat 

Cunctantem et placidis miscentem fortia dictis. 

Viribus inferior — quis enim par esset Atlanti 

Viribus ? — At quoniam parvi tibi gratia nostra est, 

Accipe munus ! ait, laevaque a parte Medusae 655 

Ipse retroversus squalentia protulit ora. 

Quantus erat, mons factus Atlas : nam barba comaeque 

In silvas abeunt ; juga sunt humerique manusque ; 

Quod caput ante fuit, summo est in monte cacumen 5 

Ossa lapis fiunt ; turn partes auctus in omnes 660 

Crevit in immensum — sic Di statuistis — et omne 

Cum tot sideribus coelum requievit in illo. 

Clauserat Hippotades aeterno carcere ventos, 
Admonitorque operum coelo clarissimus alto 
Lucifer ortus erat : pennis ligat ille resumtis 665 

Parte ab utraque pedes, teloque accingitur unco, 
Et liquidum motis talaribus aera fmdit. 
Gentibus innumeris circumque infraque relictis, 
Aethiopum populos Cepheaque conspicit arva. 
Illic immeritam maternae pendere linguae 670 

Andromeden poenas injustus jusserat Hammon. 
Quam simul ad duras religatam brachia cautes 
Vidit Abantiades, — nisi quod levis aura capillos 
Moverat, et trepido manabant lumina fletu, 
Marmoreum ratus esset opus — trahit inscius ignes 675 

Et stupet, et, visae correptus imagine formae, 
Paene suas quatere est oblitus in aere pennas. 
Ut stetit, O, dixit, non istis digna catenis, 
Sed quibus inter se cupidi junguntur amantes, 
3 



34 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Pande requirenti nomen terraeque tuumque, 680 

Et cur vincla geras. Primo silet ilia, nee audet 

Appellare virum virgo ; manibusque modestos 

Celasset vultus, si non religata fuisset. 

Lumina, quod potuit, lacrimis implevit obortis. 

Saepius instanti, sua ne delicta fateri 685 

Nolle videretur, nomen terraeque suumque, 

Quantaque maternae fuerit fiducia formae, 

Indicat ; et, nondum memoratis omnibus, unda 

Insonuit, veniensque immenso bellua ponto 

Eminet et latum sub pectore possidet aequor. 690 

Conclamat virgo : genitor lugubris et una 

Mater adest, ambo miseri, sed justius ilia ; 

Nee secum auxilium, sed dignos tempore fletus 

Plangoremque ferunt, vinctoque in corpore adhaerent. 

Quum sic hospes ait : Lacrimarum longa manere 695 

Tempora vos poterunt ; ad opem brevis hora ferendam est. 

Hanc ego si peterem Perseus Jove natus et ilia, 

Quam clausam implevit fecundo Jupiter auro, 

Gorgonis anguicomae Perseus superator, et alis 

Aetherias ausus jactatis ire per auras, 700 

Praeferrer cunctis certe gener : addere tantis 

Dotibus et meritum — faveant modo numina — tento. 

Ut mea sit, servata mea virtute, paciscor. 

Accipiunt legem — quis enim dubitaret ? — et orant 

Promittuntque super regnum dotale parentes. 70s 

Ecce, velut navis praefixo concita rostro 

Sulcat aquas, juvenum sudantibus acta lacertis, 

Sic fera, dimotis impulsu pectoris undis : 

Tantum aberat scopulis, quantum Balearica torto 

Funda potest plumbo medii transmittere coeli, 710 

Quum subito juvenis, pedibus tellure repulsa, 

Arduus in nubes abiit. Ut in aequore summo 

Umbra viri visa est, visam fera saevit in umbram. 

Utque Jovis praepes, vacuo quum vidit in arvo 

Praebentem Phoebo liventia terga draconem, 715 



METAMORPH. LIB. IV. 35 

Occupat aversum, neu saeva retorqueat ora, 

Squamigeris avidos figit cervicibus ungues ; 

Sic celeri missus praeceps per inane volatu 

Terga ferae pressit, dextroque frementis in armo 

Inachides ferrum curvo tenus abdidit hamo. 720 

Vulnere laesa gravi modo se sublimis in auras 

Attollit, modo subdit aquis, modo more ferocis 

Versat apri, quem turba canum circumsona terret 

Ille avidos morsus velocibus effugit alis, 

Quaque patent, nunc terga cavis super obsita conchis, 725 

Nunc laterum costas, nunc qua tenuissima cauda 

Desinit in piscem, falcato verberat ense. 

Bellua puniceo mixtos cum sanguine fluctus 

Ore vomit. Maduere graves adspergine pennae ; 

Nee bibulis ultra Perseus talaribus ausus 730 

Credere, conspexit scopulum, qui vertice summo 

Stantibus exstat aquis, operitur ab aequore moto : 

Nixus eo rupisque tenens juga prima sinistra, 

Ter quater exegit repetita per ilia ferrum. 

Litora cum plausu clamor superasque deorum 735 

Implevere domos : gaudent generumque salutant, 

Auxiliumque domus servatoremque fatentur 

Cassiope Cepheusque pater. Resoluta catenis 

Incedit virgo, pretiumque et causa laboris. 

Ipse manus hausta victrices abluit unda ; 740 

Anguiferumque caput nuda ne laedat arena, 

Mollit humum foliis natasque sub aequore virgas 

Sternit, et imponit Phorcynidos ora Medusae. 

Virga recens bibulaque etiamnum viva medulla 

Vim rapuit monstri, tactuque induruit hujus, 74? 

Percepitque novum ramis et fronde rigorem. 

At pelagi Nymph ae factum mirabile tentant 

Pluribus in virgis, et idem contingere gaudent, 

Seminaque ex illis iterant j aetata per undas. 

Nunc quoque curaliis eadem natura remansit, 750 

Duritiam tacto capiant ut ab aere, quodque 



36 . P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Vimen in aequore erat fiat super aequora saxum. 
Dis tribus ille focos totidem de cespite ponit, 
Laevum Mercurio, dextrum tibi, bellica Virgo ; 
Ara Jovis media est. Mactatur vacca Minervae, 755 

Alipedi vitulus, taurus tibi, summe deorum. 
Protinus Andromeden et tanti praemia facti 
Indotata rapit : taedas Hymenaeus Amorque 
Praecutiunt ; largis satiantur odoribus ignes, 
Sertaque dependent tectis, et ubique lyraeque 760 

Tibiaque et cantus, animi felicia laeti 
Argumenta, sonant ; reseratis aurea valvis 
Atria tota patent, pulchroque instructa paratu 
Cephenum proceres ineunt convivia regis. 
Postquam epulis functi generosi munere Bacchi 765 

DirTudere animos, cultusque genusque locorum 
Quaerit Abantiades : quaerenti protinus unus 
Narrat, Lyncides, moresque habitumque virorum. 
Quae simul edocuit, Nunc, o fortissime, dixit, 
Fare precor, Perseu, quanta virtute quibusque 77 o 

Artibus abstuleris crinita draconibus ora. 
Narrat Agenorides, gelido sub Atlante jacentem 
Esse locum, solidae tutum munimine molis, 
Cujus in introitu geminas habitasse sorores 
Phorcidas, unius sortitas luminis usum; 775 

Id se sollerti furtim, dum traditur, astu 
Supposita cepisse manu, perque abdita longe 
Deviaque et silvis horrentia saxa fragosis 
Gorgoneas tetigisse domos, passimque per agros 
Perque vias vidisse hominum simulacra ferarumque 780 
In silicem ex ipsis visa conversa Medusa ; 
Se tamen horrendae clypei, quod laeva gerebat, 
Aere repercusso formam adspexisse Medusae, 
Dumque gravis somnus colubras ipsamque tenebat, 
Eripuisse caput collo ; pennisque fugacem 785 

Pegason et fratrem matris de sanguine natos 
Addidit, et longi non falsa pericula cursus, 



METAMORPH. LIB. V. 37 

Quae freta, quas terras sub se vidisset ab alto, 
Et quae jactatis tetigisset sidera pennis. 



LIBER V. 



Prima Ceres unco glebam dimovit aratro, 

Prima dedit fruges alimentaque mitia terris, 

Prima dedit leges ; Cereris sunt omnia munus : 

Ilia canenda mihi est. Utinam modo dicere possem 

Carmina digna dea ! Certe dea carmine digna est. 345 

Vasta Giganteis injecta est insula membris 

Trinacris, et magnis subjectum molibus urget 

Aetherias ausum sperare Typhoea sedes. 

Nititur ille quidem pugnatque resurgere saepe ; 

Dextra sed Ausonio manus est subjecta Peloro, 35° 

Laeva, Pachyne, tibi, Lilybaeo crura premuntur, 

Degravat Aetna caput : sub qua resupinus arenas 

Ejectat flammamque fero vomit ore Typhoeus. 

Saepe remoliri luctatur pondera terrae, 

Oppidaque et magnos devolvere corpore montes. 355 

Inde tremit tellus, et rex pavet ipse silentum, 

Ne pateat latoque solum retegatur hiatu, 

Immissusque dies trepidantes terreat umbras. 

Hanc metuens cladem tenebrosa sede tyrannus 

Exierat, curruque atrorum vectus equorum 360 

Ambibat Siculae cautus fundamina terrae. 

Postquam exploratum satis est, loca nulla labare, 

Depositique metus, videt hunc Erycina vagantem 

Monte suo residens, natumque amplexa volucrem, 

Arma manusque meae, mea, nate, potentia, dixit, 365 

Ilia, quibus superas omnes, cape tela, Cupido, 

Inque dei pectus celeres molire sagittas, 



38 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Cui triplicis cessit fortuna novissima regni. 

Tu superos ipsumque Jovem, tu numina ponti 

Victa domas ipsumque, regit qui numina ponti. 370 

Tartara quid cessant ? Cur non matrisque tuumque 

Imperium profers ? Agitur pars tertia mundi. 

Et tamen in coelo, quae jam patientia nostra est, 

Spernimur, ac mecum vires minuuntur Amoris. 

Pallada nonne vides jaculatricemque Dianam 375 

Abscessisse mihi ? Cereris quoque filia virgo, 

Si patiemur, erit : nam spes affectat easdem. 

At tu, pro socio si qua est tibi gratia regno, 

Junge deam patruo. Dixit Venus ; ille pharetram 

Solvit, et arbitrio matris de mille sagittis 380 

Unam seposuit, sed qua nee acutior ulla 

Nee minus incerta est, nee quae magis audiat arcum ; 

Oppositoque genu curvavit flexile cornum, 

Inque cor hamata percussit arundine Ditem. 

Haud procul Hennaeis lacus est a moenibus altae, 385 
Nomine Pergus, aquae ; non illo plura Caystros 
Carmina cygnorum labentibus audit in undis ; 
Silva coronat aquas, cingens latus omne, suisque 
Frondibus, ut velo, Phoebeos submovet ignes ; 
Frigora dant rami, varios humus humida flores ; 39° 

Perpetuum ver est. Quo dum Proserpina luco 
Ludit et aut violas aut Candida lilia carpit, 
Dumque puellari studio calathosque sinumque 
Implet, et aequales certat superare legendo, 
Paene simul visa est dilectaque raptaque Diti : 395 

Usque adeo properatur amor. Dea territa maesto 
Et matrem et comites, sed matrem saepius, ore 
Clamat, et, ut summa vestem laniarat ab ora, 
Collecti flores tunicis cecidere remissis ; 
Tantaque simplicitas puerilibus affuit annis, 400 

Haec quoque virgineum movit jactura dolorem. 
Raptor agit currus et nomine quemque vocatos 
Exhortatur equos, quorum per colla jubasque 



METAMORPH. LIB. V. 39 

Excutit obscura tinctas ferrugine habenas, 

Perque lacus altos et olentia sulfure fertur 405 

Stagna Palicorum, rupta ferventia terra, 

Et qua Bacchiadae, bimari gens orta Corintho, 

Inter inaequales posuerunt moenia portus. 

Est medium Cyanes et Pisaeae Arethusae, 
Quod coit angustis inclusum cornibus, aequor : 410 

Hie fuit, a cujus stagnum quoque nomine dictum est, 
Inter Sicelidas Cyane celeberrima Nymphas. 
Gurgite quae medio summa tenus exstitit alvo, 
Agnovitque deam, Nee longius ibitis : inquit, 
Non potes invitae Cereris gener esse : roganda, 415 

Non rapienda fuit. Quod si componere magnis 
Parva mihi fas est, et me dilexit Anapis ; 
Exorata tamen nee, ut haec, exterrita nupsi. 
Dixit, et in partes diversas brachia tendens 
Obstitit. Haud ultra tenuit Saturnius iram, 420 

Terribilesque hortatus equos, in gurgitis ima 
Contortum valido sceptrum regale lacerto 
Condidit : icta viam tellus in Tartara fecit, 
Et pronos currus medio cratere recepit. 
At Cyane, raptamque deam contemtaque fontis 425 

Jura sui maerens, inconsolabile vulnus 
Mente gerit tacita, lacrimisque absumitur omnis, 
Et, quarum fuerat magnum modo numen, in illas 
Extenuatur aquas. Molliri membra videres, 
Ossa pati flexus, ungues posuisse rigorem ; 43 o 

Primaque de tota tenuissima quaeque liquescunt, 
Caerulei crines digitique et crura pedesque : 
Nam brevis in gelidas membris exilibus undas 
Transitus est. Post haec humeri tergumque latusque 
Pectoraque in tenues abeunt evanida rivos ; 43s 

Denique pro vivo vitiatas sanguine venas 
Lympha subit, restatque nihil quod prendere possis. 

Interea pavidae nequicquam filia matri 
Omnibus est terris, omni quaesita profundo. 



40 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Illam non udis veniens Aurora capillis 440 

Cessantem vidit, non Hesperus ; ilia duabus 

Flammiferas pinus manibus succendit ab Aetna, 

Perque pruinosas tulit irrequieta tenebras ; 

Rursus, ubi alma dies hebetarat sidera, natam 

Solis ad occasus solis quaerebat ab ortu. 445 

Fessa labore sitim collegerat, oraque nulli 

Colluerant fontes, quum tectam stramine vidit 

Forte casam, parvasque fores pulsavit : at inde 

Prodit anus, divamque videt, lymphamque roganti 

Dulce dedit, tosta quod coxerat ante polenta. 450 

Dum bibit ilia datum, duri puer oris et audax 

Constitit ante deam, risitque avidamque vocavit. 

Offensa est, neque adhuc epota parte loquentem 

Cum liquido mixta perfudit diva polenta. 

Combibit os maculas, et, qua modo brachia gessit, 455 

Crura gerit ; cauda est mutatis addita membris ; 

Inque brevem formam, ne sit vis magna nocendi, 

Contrahitur, parvaque minor mensura lacerta est. 

Mirantem flentemque et tangere monstra parantem 

Fugit anum, latebramque petit aptumque colori 460 

Nomen habet, variis stellatus corpora guttis. 

Quas dea per terras et quas erraverit undas, 
Dicere longa mora est : quaerenti defuit orbis. 
Sicaniam repetit, dumque omnia lustrat eundo, 
Venit et ad Cyanen. Ea, ni mutata fuisset, 465 

Omnia narrasset ; sed et os et lingua volenti 
Dicere non aderant, nee quo loqueretur habebat. 
Signa tamen manifesta dedit, notamque parenti, 
Illo forte loco delapsam in gurgite sacro, 
Persephones zonam summis ostendit in undis. 470 

Quam simul agnovit, — tanquam turn denique raptam 
Scisset, — inornatos laniavit diva capillos, 
Et repetita suis percussit pectora palmis. 
Nee scit adhuc ubi sit ; terras tamen increpat omnes, 
Ingratasque vocat nee frugum munere dignas, 47s 



METAMORPH. LIB. V. 41 

Trinacriam ante alias, in qua vestigia damni 

Reperit. Ergo illic saeva vertentia glebas 

Fregit aratra manu, parilique irata colonos 

Ruricolasque boves leto dedit, arvaque jussit 

Fallere depositum, vitiataque semina fecit. 480 

Fertilitas terrae, latum vulgata per orbem, 

Cassa jacet : primis segetes moriuntur in herbis, 

Et modo sol nimius, nimius modo corripit imber ; 

Sideraque ventique nocent, avidaeque volucres 

Semina jacta legunt ; lolium tribulique fatigant 485 

Triticeas messes et inexpugnabile gramen. 

Turn caput Eleis Alpheias extulit undis, 

Rorantesque comas a fronte removit ad aures, 

Atque ait : O toto quaesitae virginis orbe 

Et frugum genitrix, immensos siste labores, 490 

Neve tibi fidae violenta irascere terrae. 

Terra nihil meruit, patuitque invita rapinae. 

Nee sum pro patria supplex : hue hospita veni : 

Pisa mihi patria est, et ab Elide ducimus ortus ; 

Sicaniam peregrina colo, sed gratior omni 495 

Haec mihi terra solo est : hos nunc Arethusa penates, 

Hanc habeo sedem, quam tu, mitissima, serva. 

Mota loco cur sim tantique per aequoris undas 

Advehar Ortygiam, veniet narratibus hora 

Tempestiva meis ; quum tu curisque levata 500 

Et vultus melioris eris. Mihi pervia tellus 

Praebet iter, subterque imas ablata cavernas 

Hie caput attollo desuetaque sidera cerno. 

Ergo, dum Stygio sub terris gurgite labor, 

Visa tua est oculis illic Proserpina nostris. 505 

Ilia quidem tristis nee adhuc interrita vultu, 

Sed regina tamen, sed opaci maxima mundi, 

Sed tamen inferni pollens matrona tyranni. 

Mater ad auditas stupuit, ceu saxea, voces, 
Attonitaeque diu similis fuit. Utque dolore 51° 

Pulsa gravi gravis est amentia, curribus auras 



42 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Exit in aetherias. Ibi toto nubila vultu 

Ante Jovem passis stetit invidiosa capillis, 

Proque meo veni supplex tibi, Jupiter, inquit, 

Sanguine, proque tuo. Si nulla est gratia matris, s*5 

Nata patrem moveat, neu sit tibi cura, precamur, 

Vilior illius, quod nostro est edita partu. 

En quaesita diu tandem mihi nata reperta est ; 

Si reperire vocas amittere certius, aut si 

Scire ubi sit reperire vocas. Quod rapta, feremus ; 520 

Dummodo reddat earn : neque enim praedone marito 

Filia digna tua est, si jam mea filia non est. 

Jupiter excepit : Commune est pignus onusque 

Nata mihi tecum ; sed, si modo nomina rebus 

Addere vera placet, non hoc injuria factum, 525 

Verum amor est ; neque erit nobis gener ille pudori : 

Tu modo, diva, velis. Ut desint cetera, quantum est 

Esse Jovis fratrem ! Quid, quod non cetera desunt, 

Nee cedit nisi sorte mihi ? — Sed tanta cupido 

Si tibi discidii est, repetet Proserpina coelum : 530 

Lege tamen certa, si nullos contigit illic 

Ore cibos : nam sic Parcarum foedere cautum est. 

Dixerat ; at Cereri certum est educere natam. 

Non ita fata sinunt, quoniam jejunia virgo 

Solverat et, cultis dum simplex errat in hortis, 535 

Puniceum curva decerpserat arbore pomum, 

Sumtaque pallenti septem de cortice grana 

Presserat ore suo. Solusque ex omnibus illud 

Ascalaphus vidit — quern quondam dicitur Orphne, 

Inter Avernales haud ignotissima Nymphas, 54° 

Ex Acheronte suo furvis peperisse sub antris — 

Vidit et indicio reditum crudelis ademit. 

Ingemuit regina Erebi, testemque profanam 

Fecit avem, sparsumque caput Phlegethontide lympha 

In rostrum et plumas et grandia lumina vertit. 545 

Ille sibi ablatus fulvis amicitur ab alis, 

Inque caput crescit longosque reflectitur ungues, 



METAMORPH. LIB. VI. 



43 



Vixque movet natas per inertia brachia pennas ; 

Foedaque fit volucris, venturi nuntia luctus, 

Ignavus bubo, dirum mortalibus omen. 55° 

Hie tamen indicio poenam linguaque videri 
Commeruisse potest ; vobis, Acheloides, unde 
Pluma pedesque avium, quum virginis ora geratis ? 
An quia, quum legeret vernos Proserpina flores, 
In comitum numero mixtae, Sirenes, eratis ? 55s 

Quam postquam toto frustra quaesistis in orbe, 
Protinus, ut vestram sentirent aequora curam, 
Posse super fluctus alarum insistere remis 
Optastis, facilesque deos habuistis, et artus 
Vidistis vestros subitis flavescere pennis. 560 

Ne tamen ille canor, mulcendas natus ad aures, 
Tantaque dos oris linguae deperderet usum, 
Virginei vultus et vox humana remansit. 

At medius fratrisque sui maestaeque sororis 
Jupiter ex aequo volventem dividit annum. 565 

Nunc dea, regnorum numen commune duorum, 
Cum matre est totidem, totidem cum conjuge menses. 
Vertitur extemplo facies et mentis et oris : 
Nam, modo quae poterat Diti quoque maesta videri, 
Laeta deae frons est : ut Sol, qui tectus aquosis 570 

Nubibus ante fuit, victis ubi nubibus exit. 

***** 



LIBER VI. 



Lydia tota fremit, Phrygiaeque per oppida facti 
Rumor it et magnum sermonibus occupat orbem. 
Ante suos Niobe thalamos cognoverat illam, 
Tunc quum Maeoniam virgo Sipylumque colebat ; 



44 P- OVIDII NASONIS 

Nec tamen admonita est poena popularis Arachnes, i SO 

Cedere coelitibus verbisque minoribus uti. 

Multa dabant animos : sed enim nec conjugis artes 

Nec genus amborum magnique potentia regni 

Sic placuere illi — quamvis ea cuncta placerent — 

Ut sua progenies. Et felicissima matrum i S5 

Dicta foret Niobe, si non sibi visa fuisset 

Nam sata Tiresia, venturi praescia, Manto 

Per medias fuerat, divino concita motu, 

Vaticinata vias : Ismenides, ite frequentes, 

Et date Latonae Latonigenisque duobus 160 

Cum prece tura pia, lauroque innectite crinem ! 

Ore meo Latona jubet. Paretur, et omnes 

Thebaides jussis sua tempora frondibus ornant, 

Turaque dant Sanctis et verba precantia flammis. 

Ecce, venit comitum Niobe celeberrima turba, 165 

Vestibus intexto Phrygiis spectabilis auro, 

Et, quantum ira sinit, formosa movensque decoro 

Cum capite immissos humerum per utrumque capillos, 

Constitit j utque oculos circumtulit alta superbos, 

Quis furor auditos, inquit, praeponere visis i 7 o 

Coelestes ? Aut cur colitur Latona per aras, 

Numen adhuc sine ture meum est ? Mihi Tantalus auctor, 

Cui licuit soli superorum tangere mensas ; 

Pleiadum soror est genitrix mea ; maximus Atlas 

Est avus, aetherium qui fert cervicibus axem ; i 75 

Jupiter alter avus ; socero quoque glorior illo. 

Me gentes metuunt Phrygiae ; me regia Cadmi 

Sub domina est, fidibusque mei commissa mariti 

Moenia cum populis a meque viroque reguntur. 

In quamcumque domus adverto lumina partem, 180 

Immensae spectantur opes. Accedit eodem 

Digna dea facies. Hue natas adjice septem 

Et totidem juvenes, et mox generosque nurusque. 

Quaerite nunc, habeat quam nostra superbia causam ! 

Quoque modo audetis genitam Titanida Coeo 185 



METAMORPH. LIB. VI. 45 

Latonam praeferre mihi, cui maxima quandam 

Exiguam sedem pariturae terra negavit ? 

Nee coelo nee humo nee aquis dea vestra recepta est ; 

Exul erat mundi, donee, miserata vagantem, 

Hospita tu terris erras ; ego, dixit, in undis ! 190 

Instabilemque locum Delos dedit. Ilia duorum 

Facta parens : uteri pars haec est septima nostri. 

Sum felix : quis enim neget hoc ? felixque manebo. 

Hoc quoque quis dubitet ? Tutam me copia fecit : 

Major sum, quam cui possit Fortuna nocere ; 195 

Multaque ut eripiat, multo mihi plura relinquet. 

Excessere metum mea jam bona. Fingite demi 

Huic aliquid populo natorum posse meorum, 

Non tamen ad numerum redigar spoliata duorum 

[Latonae. Turba quae quantum distat ab orba?] 200 

Ite sacris, properate sacris, laurumque capillis 

Ponite ! — Deponunt et sacra infecta relinquunt, 

Quodque licet, tacito venerantur murmure numen. 

Indignata dea est, summoque in vertice Cynthi 

Talibus est dictis gemina cum prole locuta : 205 

En ego, vestra parens, vobis animosa creatis, 

Et nisi Junoni nulli cessura dearum, 

An dea sim, dubitor, perque omnia secula cultis 

Arceor, o nati, nisi vos succurritis, aris. 

Nee dolor hie solus : diro convicia facto 210 

Tantalis adjecit, vosque est postponere natis 

Ausa suis, et me, quod in ipsam recidat, orbam 

Dixit, ex exhibuit linguam scelerata paternam. 

Adjectura preces erat his Latona relatis ; 

Desine : Phoebus ait, poenae mora longa querela est. 215 

Dixit idem Phoebe ; celerique per aera lapsu 

Contigerant tecti Cadmeida nubibus arcem. 

Planus erat lateque patens prope moenia campus, 

Assiduis pulsatus equis, ubi turba rotarum 

Duraque mollierat subjectas ungula glebas. 220 

Pars ibi de septem genitis Amphione fortes 



46 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Conscendunt in equos, Tyrioque rubentia suco 

Terga premunt auroque graves moderantur habenas. 

E quibus Ismenos, qui matri sarcina quondam 

Prima suae fuerat, dum certum flectit in orbem 225 

Quadrupedis cursus spumantiaque ora coercet, 

Hei mihi ! conclamat medioque in pectore fixus 

Tela gerit, frenisque manu moriente remissis 

In latus a dextro paullatim defluit armo. 

Proximus, audito sonitu per inane pharetrae, 230 

Frena dabat Sipylus, veluti quum praescius imbris 

Nube fugit visa pendentiaque undique rector 

Carbasa deducit, ne qua levis effluat aura. 

Frena tamen dantem non evitabile telum 

Consequitur, summaque tremens cervice sagitta 235 

Haesit, et exstabat nudum de gutture ferrum. 

Ille, ut erat pronus, per colla admissa jubasque 

Volvitur, et calido tellurem sanguine foedat. 

Phaedimus infelix et aviti nominis heres 

Tantalus, ut solito finem imposuere labori, 240 

Transierant ad opus nitidae juvenile palaestrae ; 

Et jam contulerant arto luctantia nexu 

Pectora pectoribus, quum tento concita nervo, 

Sicut erant juncti, trajecit utrumque sagitta. 

Ingemuere simul, simul incurvata dolore 245 

Membra solo posuere, simul suprema jacentes 

Lumina versarunt, animam simul exhalarunt. 

Adspicit Alphenor laniataque pectora plangens 

Advolat, ut gelidos complexibus allevet artus, 

Inque pio cadit officio : nam Delius illi 250 

Intima fatifero rupit praecordia ferro ; 

Quod simul eductum est, pars est pulmonis in hamis 

Eruta, cumque anima cruor est effusus in auras. 

At non intonsum simplex Damasichthona vulnus 

Afficit : ictus erat, qua cms esse incipit et qua 255 

Mollia nodosus facit internodia poples, 

Dumque manu tentat trahere exitiabile telum, 



METAMORPH. LIB. VI. 47 

Altera per jugulum pennis tenus acta sagitta est. 

Expulit hanc sanguis, seque ejaculatus in altum 

Emicat et longe terebrata prosilit aura. 260 

Ultimus Ilioneus non profectura precando 

Brachia sustulerat, Dique o communiter omnes, 

Dixerat, ignarus non omnes esse rogandos, 

Parcite ! Motus erat, quum jam revocabile telum 

Non fuit, Arcitenens ; minimo tamen occidit ille 265 

Vulnere, non alte percusso corde sagitta. 

Fama mali populique dolor lacrimaeque suorum 

Tarn subitae matrem certam fecere ruinae, 

Mirantem potuisse, irascentemque quod ausi 

Hoc essent superi, quod tantum juris haberent. 270 

Nam pater Amphion ferro per pectus adacto 

Finierat moriens pariter cum luce dolorem. 

Heu, quantum haec Niobe Niobe distabat ab ilia, 

Quae modo Latois populum submoverat aris 

Et mediam tulerat gressus resupina per urbem, 275 

Invidiosa suis ! At nunc miseranda vel hosti 

Corporibus gelidis incumbit, et ordine nullo 

Oscula dispensat natos suprema per omnes. 

A quibus ad coelum liventia brachia tendens, 

Pascere, crudelis, nostro, Latona, dolore, 280 

[Pascere, ait, satiaque meo tua pectora luctu,] 

Corque ferum satia ! dixit : Per funera septem 

Efferor : exsulta, victrixque inimica triumpha ! 

Cur autem victrix ? Miserae mihi plura supersunt, 

Quam tibi felici : post tot quoque funera vinco. 285 

Dixerat ; et sonuit contento nervus ab arcu, 

Qui praeter Nioben unam conterruit omnes ; 

Ilia malo est audax. Stabant cum vestibus atris 

Ante toros fratrum demisso crine sorores. 

E quibus una, trahens haerentia viscere tela, 290 

Imposito fratri moribunda relanguit ore. 

Altera, solari miseram conata parentem, 

Conticuit subito, duplicataque vulnere caeco est, 



48 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Oraque non pressit, sibi postquam spiritus exit. 

Haec frustra fugiens collabitur, ilia sorori 295 

Immoritur ; latet haec, illam trepidare videres. 

Sexque datis leto diversaque vulnera passis, 

Ultima restabat ; quam toto corpore mater 

Tota veste tegens, Unam minimamque relinque I 

De multis minimam posco, clamavit, et unam. 300 

Dumque rogat, pro qua rogat, occidit. Orba resedit 

Exanimes inter natos natasque virumque, 

Diriguitque malis : nullos movet aura capillos, 

In vultu color est sine sanguine, lumina maestis 

Stant immota genis, nihil est in imagine vivum. 30s 

Ipsa quoque interius cum duro lingua palato 

Congelat, et venae desistunt posse moveri ; 

Nee flecti cervix, nee brachia reddere gestus, 

Nee pes ire potest ; intra quoque viscera saxum est. 

Flet tamen, et validi circumdata turbine venti 310 

In patriam rapta est : ubi fixa cacumine montis 

Liquitur, et lacrimas etiam nunc marmora manant. 



LIBER VIII. 

* # # # ° # 

Daedalus interea Creten longumque perosus 
Exilium, tactusque soli natalis amore, 
Clausus erat pelago. Terras licet, inquit, et undas 185 
Obstruat, at coelum certe patet : ibimus iliac ! 
Omnia possideat, non possidet aera Minos ! 
Dixit, et ignotus animum dimittit in artes, 
Naturamque novat : nam ponit in ordine pennas 
A minima coeptas, longam breviore sequente, 19° 

Ut clivo crevisse putes. Sic rustica quondam 
Fistula disparibus paullatim surgit avenis. 



METAMORPH. LIB. VIII. 49 

Turn lino'medias et ceris alligat imas, 
Atque ita compositas parvo curvamine flectit, 
Ut veras imitetur aves. Puer Icarus una 195 

Stabat et, ignarus sua se tractare pericla, 
Ore renidenti modo, quas vaga moverat aura, 
Captabat plumas, flavam modo pollice ceram 
Mollibat lusuque suo mirabile patris 

Impediebat opus. Postquam manus ultima coeptis 200 
Imposita est, geminas opifex libravit in alas 
Ipse suum corpus, motaque pependit in aura. 
Instruit et natum, Medioque ut limite curras, 
Icare, ait, moneo, ne, si demissior ibis, 
Unda gravet pennas ; si celsior, ignis adurat. 205 

Inter utrumque vola ! Nee te spectare Booten 
Aut Helicen jubeo strictumque Orionis ensem ; 
Me duce carpe viam ! Pariter praecepta volandi 
Tradit, et ignotas humeris accommodat alas. 
Inter opus monitusque genae maduere seniles 210 

Et patriae tremuere manus. Dedit oscula nato 
Non iterum repetenda suo, pennisque levatus 
Ante volat, comitique timet, velut ales, ab alto 
Quae teneram prolem produxit in aera nido 
Hortaturque sequi damnosasque erudit artes, 215 

Et movet ipse suas et nati respicit alas. 
Hos aliquis, tremula dum captat arundine pisces, 
Aut pastor baculo stivave innixus arator 
Videt et obstupuit, quique aethera carpere possent, 
Credidit esse deos. Et jam Junonia laeva 220 

Parte Samos fuerant Delosque Parosque relictae, 
Dextra Lebynthos erat fecundaque melle Calymne, 
Quum puer audaci coepit gaudere volatu 
Deseruitque ducem, coelique cupidine tactus 
Altius egit iter. Rapidi vicinia solis 225 

Mollit odoratas, pennarum vincula, ceras. 
Tabuerant cerae : nudos quatit ille lacertos, 
Remigioque carens non ullas percipit auras \ 
4 



50 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Oraque caerulea patrium clamantia nomen 

Excipiuntur aqua, quae nomen traxit ab illo. 230 

At pater infelix, nee jam pater, Icare ! dixit, 

Icare, dixit, ubi es ? Qua te regione requiram, 

Icare ! dicebat : pennas conspexit in undis, 

Devovitque suas artes, corpusque sepulcro 

Condidit ; et tellus a nomine dicta sepulti. 235 

^ tt ^P 2jF ^ 

Immensa est finemque potentia coeli 
Non habet, et quicquid superi voluere, peractum est. 620 
Quoque minus dubites, tiliae contermina quercus 
Collibus est Phrygiis, modico circumdata muro. 
Ipse locum vidi : nam me Pelopeia Pittheus 
Misit in arva, suo quondam regnata parenti. 
Haud procul hinc stagnum, tellus habitabilis olim ; 625 
Nunc celebres mergis fulicisque palustribus undae. 
Jupiter hue specie mortali, cumque parente 
Venit Atlantiades positis caducifer alis. 
Mille domos adiere, locum requiemque petentes ; 
Mille domos clausere serae. Tamen una recepit, 6 3 o 

Parva quidem, stipulis et canna tecta palustri ; 
Sed pia Baucis anus parilique aetate Philemon 
Ilia sunt annis juncti juvenilibus, ilia 
Consenuere casa, paupertatemque fatendo 
Effecere levem nee iniqua mente ferendam. 635 

Nee refert, dominos illic famulosne requiras : 
Tota domus duo sunt, idem parentque jubentque. 
Ergo ubi coelicolae parvos tetigere penates, 
Submissoque humiles intrarunt vertice postes, 
Membra senex posito jussit relevare sedili, 640 

Quo superinjecit textum rude sedula Baucis. 
Inde foco tepidum cin'erem dimovit, et ignes 
Suscitat hesternos, foliisque et cortice sicco 
Nutrit, et ad flammas anima producit anili, 
Multifidasque faces ramaliaque arida tecto 645 

Detulit, et minuit parvoque admovit aheno ; 



METAMORPH. LIB. VIII. 5 1 

Quodque suus conjux riguo collegerat horto, 

Truncat olus foliis. Furca levat ille bicorni 

Sordida terga suis, nigro pendentia tigno, 

Servatoque diu resecat de tergore partem 650 

Exiguam, sectamque domat ferventibus undis. 

Interea medias fallunt sermonibus horas, 

Sentirique moram prohibent. Erat alveus illic 

Fagineus, dura clavo suspensus ab ansa : 

Is tepidis impletur aquis, artusque fovendos 6 55 

Accipit. In medio torus est de mollibus ulvis, 

Impositus lecto, sponda pedibusque salignis : 

Vestibus hunc velant, quas non nisi tempore festo 

Sternere consuerant ; sed et haec vilisque vetusque 

Vestis erat, lecto non indignanda saligno. 660 

Accubuere dei : mensam succincta tremensque 

Ponit anus ; mensae sed erat pes tertius impar : 

Testa parem fecit. Quae postquam subdita clivum 

Sustulit, aequatam mentae tersere virentes. 

Ponitur hie bicolor sincerae bacca Minervae, 665 

Conditaque in liquida corna autumnalia faece, 

Intubaque et radix et lactis massa coacti, 

Ovaque non acri leviter versata favilla : 

Omnia fictilibus. Post haec caelatus eodem 

Sistitur argento crater, fabricataque fago 670 

Pocula, qua cava sunt, flaventibus illita ceris. 

Parva mora est, epulasque foci misere calentes. 

Nee longae rursus referuntur vina senectae, 

Dantque locum mensis paullum seducta secundis. 

Hie nux, hie mixta est rugosis carica palmis, 675 

Prunaque et in patulis redolentia mala canistris, 

Et de purpureis collectae vitibus uvae ; 

Candidus in medio favus est. Super omnia vultus 

Accessere boni, nee iners pauperque voluntas. 

Interea toties haustum cratera repleri 680 

Sponte sua per seque vident succrescere vina : 

Attoniti novitate pavent, manibusque supinis 



52 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Concipiunt Baucisque preces timidusque Philemon, 

Et veniam dapibus nullisque paratibus orant. 

Unicus anser erat, minimae custodia villae, 685 

Quem dis hospitibus domini mactare parabant. 

Ille celer penna tardos aetate fatigat, 

Eluditque diu, tandemque est visus ad ipsos 

Confugisse deos. Superi vetuere necari, 

Dique sumus, meritasque luet vicinia poenas 690 

Impia, dixerunt, vobis immunibus hujus 

Esse mali dabitur : modo vestra relinquite tecta 

Ac nostros comitate gradus, et in ardua montis 

Ite simul ! Parent et, dis praeeuntibus, ambo 

Membra levant baculis, tardique senilibus annis 695 

Nituntur longo vestigia ponere clivo. 

Tantum aberant summo, quantum semel ire sagitta 

Missa potest : flexere oculos, et mersa palude 

Cetera prospiciunt, tantum sua tecta manere. 

Dumque ea mirantur, dum deflent fata suorum, 700 

Ilia vetus, dominis etiam casa parva duobus, 

Vertitur in templum : furcas subiere columnae, 

Stramina flavescunt aurataque tecta videntur, 

Caelataeque fores adopertaque marmore tellus. 

Talia turn placido Saturnius edidit ore : 705 

Dicite, juste senex et femina conjuge justo 

Digna, quid optetis. Cum Baucide pauca locutus, 

Judicium Superis aperit commune Philemon : 

Esse sacerdotes delubraque vestra tueri 

Poscimus ; et quoniam Concordes egimus annos, 710 

Auferat hora duos eadem, nee conjugis unquam 

Busta meae videam, neu sim tumulandus ab ilia. 

Vota fides sequitur : templi tutela fuere, 

Donee vita data est. Annis aevoque soluti 

Ante gradus sacros quum starent forte locique 71s 

Narrarent casus, frondere Philemona Baucis, 

Baucida conspexit senior frondere Philemon : 

Jamque super geminos crescente cacumine vultus, 



METAMORPH. LIB. X. 53 

Mutua, dum licuit, reddebant dicta, Valeque, 

O conjux ! dixere simul, simul abdita texit 720 

Ora frutex. Ostendit adhuc Tyaneius illic 

Incola de gemino vicinos corpore truncos. 

Haec mihi non vani — nee erat cur fallere vellent — 

Narravere senes ; equidem pendentia vidi 

Serta super ramos, ponensque recentia dixi : 725 

Cura pii Dis sunt, et, qui coluere, coluntur. 



LIBER X. 

Inde per immensum croceo velatus amictu 

Aera digreditur Ciconumque Hymenaeus ad oras 

Tendit, et Orphea nequicquam voce vocatur. 

AfFuit ille quidem ; sed nee sollennia verba 

Nee laetos vultus nee felix attulit omen j 

Fax quoque, quam tenuit, lacrimoso stridula fumo 

Usque fuit nullosque invenit motibus ignes. 

Exitus auspicio gravior : nam nupta per herbas 

Dum nova Naiadum turba comitata vagatur, 

Occidit in talum serpentis dente recepto. 

Quam satis ad superas postquam Rhodopeius auras 

Deflevit vates, ne non tentaret et umbras, 

Ad Styga Taenaria est ausus descendere porta, 

Perque leves populos simulacraque functa sepulcris 

Persephonen adiit inamoenaque regna tenentem 

Umbrarum dominum, pulsisque ad carmina nervis 

Sic ait : O positi sub terra numina mundi, 

In quern decidimus quicquid mortale creamur, 

Si licet et falsi positis ambagibus oris 

Verba loqui sinitis, non hue, ut opaca viderem 

Tartara, descendi, nee uti villosa colubris 

Terna Medusaei vincirem guttura monstri : 



54 P- OVIDII NASONIS 

Causa viae conjux, in quam calcata venerium 

Vipera diffudit crescentesque abstulit annos. 

Posse pati volui, nee me tentasse negabo ; 25 

Vicit Amor. Supera deus hie bene notus in ora est ; 

An sit et hie, dubito, sed et hie tamen auguror esse ; 

Famaque si veteris non est mentita rapinae, 

Vos quoque junxit Amor. Per ego haec loca plena timoris, 

Per chaos hoc ingens vastique silentia regni, 30 

Eurydices, oro, properata retexite fata ! 

Omnia debemur vobis, paullumque morati, 

Serius aut citius sedem properamus ad unam. 

Tendimus hue omnes, haec est domus ultima, vosque 

Humani generis longissima regna tenetis. 35 

Haec quoque, quum justos matura peregerit annos, 

Juris erit vestri ; pro munere poscimus usum. 

Quod si fata negant veniam pro conjuge, certum est 

Nolle redire mihi : leto gaudete duorum. 

Talia dicentem nervosque ad verba moventem 4 o 

Exsangues flebant animae : nee Tantalus undam 

Captavit refugam, stupuitque Ixionis orbis, 

Nee carpsere jecur volucres, urnisque vacarunt 

Belides, inque tuo sedisti, Sisyphe, saxo. 

Tunc primum lacrimis victarum carmine fama est 45 

Eumenidum maduisse genas ; nee regia conjux 

Sustinet oranti nee, qui regit ima, negare, 

Eurydicenque vocant. Umbras erat ilia recentes 

Inter, et incessit passu de vulnere tardo. 

Hanc simul et legem Rhodopeius accipit heros, 50 

Ne flectat retro sua lumina, donee Avernas 

Exierit valles ; aut irrita dona futura. 

Carpitur acclivis per muta silentia trames, 

Arduus, obscurus, caligine densus opaca. 

Nee procul abfuerant telluris margine summae : 55 

Hie, ne deficeret, metuens, avidusque videndi 

Flexit amans oculos ; et protinus ilia relapsa est, 

Brachiaque intendens, prendique et prendere captans, 



METAMORPH. LIB. XI. 55 

Nil nisi cedentes infelix arripit auras. 

Jamque iterum moriens non est de conjuge quicquam 60 

Questa suo : quid enim nisi se quereretur amatam ? 

Supremumque vale, quod jam vix auribus ille 

Acciperet, dixit, revolutaque rursus eodem est. 

Non aliter stupuit gemina nece conjugis Orpheus, 

Quam tria qui timidus, medio portante catenas, 65 

Colla canis vidit : quern non pavor ante reliquit, 

Quam natura prior, saxo per corpus oborto ; 

Quique in se crimen traxit voluitque videri 

Olenos esse nocens, tuque, o confisa figurae 

Infelix Lethaea tuae, junctissima quondam 70 

Pectora, nunc lapides, quos humida sustinet Ide. 

Orantem frustraque iterum transire volentem 

Portitor arcuerat ; septem tamen ille diebus 

Squalidus in ripa Cereris sine munere sedit : 

Cura dolorque animi lacrimaeque alimenta fuere. 75 

Esse deos Erebi crudeles questus, in altam 

Se recipit Rhodopen pulsumque Aquilonibus Haemon. 



LIBER XI. 

Carmine dum tali silvas animosque ferarum 
Threicius vates et saxa sequentia ducit, 
Ecce nurus Ciconum, tectae lymphata ferinis 
Pectora velleribus, tumuli de vertice cernunt 
Orphea percussis sociantem carmina nervis. 
E quibus una, levem jactato crine per auram, 
En, ait, en hie est nostri contemtor ! et hastam 
Vatis Apollinei vocalia misit in ora, 
Quae foliis praesuta notam sine vulnere fecit. 
Alterius telum lapis est, qui missus in ipso 
Aere concentu victus vocisque lyraeque est, 



56 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Ac veluti supplex pro tarn furialibus ausis 

Ante pedes jacuit. Sed enim temeraria crescunt 

Bella, modusque abiit insanaque regnat Erinnys. 

Cunctaque tela forent cantu mollita, sed ingens 15 

Clamor et inflato Berecyntia tibia cornu 

Tympanaque et plausus et Bacchei ululatus 

Obstrepuere sono citharae. Turn denique saxa 

Non exauditi rubuerunt sanguine vatis. 

Ac primum attonitas etiamnum voce canentis 20 

Innumeras volucres anguesque agmenque ferarum 

Maenades Orphei titulum rapuere theatri j 

Inde cruentatis vertuntur in Orphea dextris, 

Et coeunt, ut aves, si quando luce vagantem 

Noctis avem cernunt, structoque utrimque theatro 25 

Ut matutina cervus periturus arena 

Praeda canum est ; vatemque petunt, et fronde virentes 

Conjiciunt thyrsos non haec in munera factos. 

Hae glebas, illae direptos arbore ramos, 

Pars torquent silices. Neu desint tela furori, 30 

Forte boves presso subigebant vomere terram, 

Nee procul hinc, multo fructum sudore parantes, 

Dura lacertosi fodiebant arva coloni : 

Agmine qui viso fugiunt operisque relinquunt 

Arma sui, vacuosque jacent dispersa per agros 35 

Sarculaque rastrique graves longique ligones. 

Quae postquam rapuere ferae, cornuque minaces 

Divellere boves, ad vatis fata recurrunt, 

Tendentemque manus atque illo tempore primum 

Irrita dicentem nee quicquam voce moventem 40 

Sacrilegae perimunt • perque os — pro Jupiter ! — illud, 

Auditum saxis intellectumque ferarum 

Sensibus, in ventos anima exhalata recessit. 

Te maestae volucres, Orpheu, te turba ferarum, 

Te rigidi silices, tua carmina saepe secutae 45 

Fleverunt silvae j positis te frondibus arbos 

Tonsa comam luxit ; lacrimis quoque flumina dicunt 



METAMORPH. LIB. XI. 57 

Increvisse suis, obscuraque carbasa pullo 

Naides et Dryades passosque habuere capillos. 

Membra jacent diversa locis. Caput, Hebre, lyramque 50 

Excipis, et — minim — medio dum labitur amne, 

Flebile nescio quid queritur lyra, flebile lingua 

Murmurat exanimis, respondent flebile ripae. 

Jamque mare invectae flumen populare relinquunt, 

Et Methymnaeae potiuntur litore Lesbi : 55 

Hie ferus expositum peregrinis anguis arenis 

Os petit et sparsos stillanti rore capillos. 

Tandem Phoebus adest morsusque inferre parantem 

Arcet, et in lapidem rictus serpentis apertos 

Congelat, et patulos, ut erant, indurat hiatus. 60 

Umbra subit terras et, quae loca viderat ante, 

Cuncta recognoscit, quaerensque per arva piorum 

Invenit Eurydicen cupidisque amplectitur ulnis. 

Hie modo conjunctis spatiantur passibus ambo, 

Nunc praecedentem sequitur, nunc praevius anteit 65 

Eurydicenque suam jam tuto respicit Orpheus. 

Non impune tamen scelus hoc sinit esse Lyaeus ; 
Amissoque dolens sacrorum vate suorum, 
Protinus in silvis matres Edonidas omnes, 
Quae videre nefas r torta radice ligavit. 70 

Quippe pedum digitos, in quantum est quaeque secuta, 
Traxit et in solidam detrusit acumine terrain. 
Utque suum laqueis, quos callidus abdidit auceps, 
Crus ubi commisit volucris sensitque teneri, 
Plangitur, ac trepidans adstringit vincula motu : 75 

Sic, quaecunque solo de fixa cohaeserat harum, 
Exsternata fugam frustra tentabat j at illam 
Lenta tenet radix exsultantemque coercet. 
Dumque ubi sint digiti, dum pes ubi, quaerit, et ungues, 
Adspicit in teretes lignum succedere suras, s 

Et conata femur maerenti plangere dextra, 
Robora percussit j pectus quoque robora hunt, 
Robora sunt humeri, porrectaque brachia veros 
Esse putes ramos et non fallare putando. 



58 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Nec satis hoc Baccho est : ipsos quoque deserit agros, 8 s 

Cumque choro meliore sui vineta Tymoli 

Pactolonque petit, quamvis non aureus illo 

Tempore nec caris erat invidiosus arenis. 

Hunc assueta cohors, Satyri Bacchaeque, frequentant ; 

At Silenus abest. Titubantem annisque meroque 90 

Ruricolae cepere Phryges, vinctumque coronis 

Ad regem duxere Midan, cui Thracius Orpheus 

Orgia tradiderat cum Cecropio Eumolpo. 

Qui simul agnovit socium comitemque sacrorum, 

Hospitis adventu festum genialiter egit 9s 

Per bis quinque dies et junctas ordine noctes. 

Et jam stellarum sublime coegerat agmen 

Lucifer undecimus, Lydos quum laetus in agros 

Rex venit, et juveni Silenum reddit alumno. 

Huic deus optandi gratum, sed inutile, fecit 100 

Muneris arbitrium, gaudens altore recepto. 

Ille, male usurus donis, ait : Effice, quicquid 

Corpore contigero, fulvum vertatur in aurum. 

Annuit optatis, nocituraque munera solvit 

Liber, et indoluit quod non meliora petisset. 105 

Laetus abit gaudetque malo Berecyntius heros, 

Pollicitique fidem tangendo singula tentat. 

Vixque sibi credens, non alta fronde virentem 

Ilice detraxit virgam ; virga aurea facta est. 

Tollit humo saxum ; saxum quoque palluit auro : no 

Contigit et glebam ; contactu gleba potenti 

Massa fit : arentes Cereris decerpsit aristas ; 

Aurea messis erat : demtum tenet arbore pomum ; 

Hesperidas donasse putes : si postibus altis 

Admovit digitos, postes radiare videntur. 115 

Ille etiam liquidis palmas ubi laverat undis, 

Unda fluens palmas Danaen eludere posset. 

Vix spes ipse suas animo capit, aurea fmgens 

Omnia. Gaudenti mensas posuere ministri, 

Exstructas dapibus nec tostae frugis egentes. 120 

Turn vero sive ille sua Cerealia dextra 



METAMORPH. LIB. XI. 59 

Munera contigerat, Cerealia dona rigebant ; 

Sive dapes avido convellere dente parabat. 

Lamina fulva dapes admoto dente premebat. 

Miscuerat puris auctorem muneris undis ; 125 

Fusile per rictus aurum fluitare videres. 

Attonitus novitate mali, divesque miserque 

EfTugere optat opes et, quae modo voverat, odit. 

Copia nulla famem relevat ; sitis arida guttur 

Urit, et inviso meritus torquetur ab auro. 130 

Ad coelumque manus et splendida brachia tollens, 

Da veniam, Lenaee pater ! Peccavimus ; inquit, 

Sed miserere, precor, speciosoque eripe damno ! 

Mite deum numen, Bacchus peccasse fatentem 

Restituit, factaque fide data munera solvit. 135 

Neve male optato maneas circumlitus auro, 

Vade, ait, ad magnis vicinum Sardibus amnem, 

Perque jugum ripae labentibus obvius undis 

Carpe viam, donee venias ad fluminis ortus ; 

Spumigeroque tuum fonti, qua plurimus exit, 140 

Subde caput, corpusque simul, simul elue crimen. 

Rex jussae succedit aquae. Vis aurea tinxit 

Flumen et humano de corpore cessit in amnem. 

Nunc quoque jam veteris percepto semine venae 

Arva rigent, auro madidis pallentia glebis. 145 

Ille, perosus opes, silvas et rura colebat 
Panaque montanis habitantem semper in antris. 
Pingue sed ingenium mansit ; nocituraque, ut ante, 
Rursus erant domino stolidae praecordia mentis. 
Nam freta prospiciens, late riget arduus alto 150 

Tmolus in adscensu, clivoque extentus utroque, 
Sardibus hinc, illinc parvis finitur Hypaepis. 
Pan ibi dum teneris jactat sua carmina Nymphis, 
Et leve cerata modulatur arundine carmen, 
Ausus Apollineos prae se contemnere cantus, 15s 

Judice sub Tmolo certamen venit ad impar. 
Monte suo senior judex consedit, et aures 



60 P. OVIDII NASONIS METAMORPH. LIB. XI. 

Liberat arboribus : quercu coma caerula tantum 

Cingitur, et pendent circum cava tempora glandes. 

Isque deum pecoris spectans, In judice, dixit, 160 

Nulla mora est. Calamis agrestibus insonat ille, 

Barbaricoque Midan — aderat nam forte canenti — 

Carmine delenit. Post nunc sacer ora retorsit 

Tmolus ad os Phoebi : vultum sua silva secuta est. 

Ille, caput navum lauro Parnaside vinctus, 165 

Verrit humum Tyrio saturata murice palla, 

Distinctamque lyram gemmis et dentibus Indis 

Sustinuit laeva, tenuit manus altera plectrum. 

Artificis status ipse fuit. Turn stamina docto 

Pollice sollicitat : quorum dulcedine captus 170 

Pana jubet Tmolus citharae submittere cannas.. 

Judicium sanctique placet sententia montis 

Omnibus ; arguitur tamen atque injusta vocatur 

Unius sermone Midae. Nee Delius aures 

Humanam stolidas patitur retinere figuram ; 175 

Sed trahit in spatium, villisque albentibus implet, 

Instabilesque imo facit et dat posse moveri. . 

Cetera sunt hominis ; partem damnatur in unam, 

Induiturque aures lente gradientis aselli. 

Ille quidem celat, turpique onerata pudore 180 

Tempora purpureis tentat velare tiaris ; 
Sed solitus longos ferro resecare capillos 
Viderat hoc famulus. Qui quum nee prodere visum 
Dedecus auderet, cupiens efferre sub auras, 
Nee posset reticere tamen, secedit humumque 185 

ErTodit et, domini quales adspexerit aures, 
Voce refert parva, terraeque immurmurat haustae ; 
Indiciumque suae vocis tellure regesta 
Obruit, et scrobibus tacitus discedit opertis. 
Creber arundinibus tremulis ibi surgere lucus 190 

Coepit et, ut primum pleno maturuit aevo, 
Prodidit agricolam : leni nam motus ab Austro 
Obruta verba refert dominique coarguit aures. 



P. OVIDII NASONIS 

TRISTIUM LIBER IV. 



ELEGIA X. 

Ille ego, qui fuerim, tenerorum lusor amorum, 

Quern legis, ut noris, accipe, posteritas. 
Sulmo mihi patria est, gelidis uberrimus undis, 

Millia qui novies distat ab Urbe decern : 
Editus hinc ego sum ; nee non, ut tempora noris, 

Quum cecidit fato consul uterque pari • 
Si quid id est, usque a proavis vetus ordinis heres, 

Non modo Fortunae munere factus eques. 
Nee stirps prima fui ; genito sum fratre creatus, 

Qui tribus ante quater mensibus ortus erat. 
Lucifer amborum natalibus affuit idem • 

Una celebrata est per duo liba dies. 
Haec est armiferae festis de quinque Minervae, 

Quae fieri pugna prima cruenta solet. 
Protinus excolimur teneri, curaque parentis 

Imus ad insignes Urbis ab arte viros. 
Frater ad eloquium viridi tendebat ab aevo, 

Fortia verbosi natus ad arma fori. 
At mihi jam puero coelestia sacra placebant, 

Inque suum furtim Musa trahebat opus. 
Saepe pater dixit : Studium quid inutile tentas ? 

Maeonides nullas ipse reliquit opes. 
Motus eram dictis, totoque Helicone relicto, 

Scribere conabar verba soluta modis : 



62 P. OVIDII NASONIS 

Sponte sua carmen numeros veniebat ad aptos, 25 

Et, quod tentabam scribere, versus erat. 
Interea tacito passu labentibus annis, 

Liberior fratri sumta mihique toga est, 
Induiturque humerus cum lato purpura clavo ; 

Et studium nobis, quod fait ante, manet. 30 

Jamque decern vitae frater geminaverat annos, 

Quum perit, et coepi parte carere mei. 
Cepimus et tenerae primos aetatis honores, 

Deque viris quondam pars tribus una fui. 
Curia restabat ; clavi mensura coacta est : 35 

Majus erat nostris viribus illud onus. 
Nee patiens corpus nee mens fuit apta labori, 

Sollicitaeque fugax ambitionis eram • 
Et petere Aoniae suadebant tuta Sorores 

Otia, judicio semper amata meo. 40 

Temporis illius colui fovique poetas, 

Quotque aderant vates, rebar adesse deos. 
Saepe suas volucres legit mihi grandior aevo, 

Quaeque necet serpens, quae juvet herba, Macer ; 
Saepe suos solitus recitare Propertius ignes, 45 

Jure sodalitii qui mihi junctus erat. 
Ponticus heroo, Bassus quoque clarus iambo, 

Dulcia convictus membra fuere mei ; 
Et tenuit nostras numerosus Horatius aures, 

Dum ferit Ausonia carmina culta lyra. 50 

Virgilium vidi tantum ; nee amara Tibullo 

Tempus amicitiae fata dedere meae. 
Successor fuit hie tibi, Galle, Propertius illi ; 

Quartus ab his serie temporis ipse fui. 
Utque ego majores, sic me coluere minores, ss 

Notaque non tarde facta Thalia mea est. 
Carmina quum primum populo juvenilia legi, 

Barba resecta mihi bisve semelve fuit. 
Moverat ingenium totam cantata per Urbem 

Nomine non vero dicta Corinna mihi. 60 



TRISTIUM LIB. IV. ELEG. X. 63 

Multa quidem scripsi ; sed, quae vitiosa putavi, 

Emendaturis ignibus ipse dedi. 
Tunc quoque, quum fugerem, quaedam placitura cremavi, 

Iratus studio carminibusque meis. 
Molle, Cupidineis nee inexpugnabile telis 65 

Cor mihi, quod que levis causa moveret, erat. 
Quum tamen hie essem, minimoque accenderer igne, 

Xomine sub nostro fabula nulla fuit. 
Paene mihi puero nee digna nee utilis uxor 

Est data, quae tempus per breve nupta fuit. 7° 

Illi successit quamvis sine crimine conjux, 

Xon tamen in nostro firma futura toro. 
Ultima, quae mecum seros permansit in annos, 

Sustinuit conjux exsulis esse viri. 
Filia me mea bis prima fecunda juventa, 75 

Sed non ex uno conjuge, fecit avum. 
Et jam complerat genitor sua fata, novemque 

Addiderat lustris altera lustra novem. 
Non aliter flevi, quam me fleturus ademtum 

Ille fuit. Matri proxima justa tuli. 80 

Felices ambo, tempestiveque sepulti, 

Ante diem poenae quod periere meae ! 
Me quoque felicem, quod non viventibus illis 

Sum miser, et de me quod doluere nihil ! 
Si tamen exstinctis aliquid nisi nomina restat, 85 

Et gracilis structos effugit umbra rogos ; 
Fama, parentales, si vos mea contigit, umbrae, 

Et sunt in Stygio crimina nostra foro ; 
Scite, precor, causam — nee vos mihi fallere fas est — 

Errorem jussae, non scelus, esse fugae. 90 

Manibus hoc satis est. Ad vos, studiosa, revertor, 

Pectora, quae vitae quaeritis acta meae. 
Jam mihi canities, pulsis melioribus annis, 

Venerat, antiquas miscueratque comas, 
Postque meos ortus Pisaea vinctus oliva 95 

Abstulerat decies praemia victor equus, 



: 



64 P. OVIDII NASONIS TRISTIUM LIB. IV. ELEG. X. 

Quum maris Euxini positos ad laeva Tomitas 

Quaerere me laesi Principis ira jubet. 
Causa meae cunctis nimium quoque nota ruinae 

Indicio non est testificanda meo. 100 

Quid referam comitumque nefas famulosque nocentes ? 

Ipsa multa tuli non leviora fuga. 
Indignata malis mens est succumbere, seque 

Praestitit invictam viribus usa suis ; 
Oblitusque mei ductaeque per otia vitae, TO5 

Insolita cepi temporis arma manu ; 
Totque tuli terra casus pelagoque, quot inter 

Occultum stellae conspicuumque polum. 
Tacta mihi tandem longis erroribus acto 

Juncta pharetratis Sarmatis ora Getis. i IO 

Hie ego, finitimis quamvis circumsoner armis, 

Tristia, quo possum, carmine fata levo. 
Quod quamvis nemo est cujus referatur ad aures, 

Sic tamen absumo decipioque diem. 
Ergo, quod vivo durisque laboribus obsto, n 5 

Nee me sollicitae taedia lucis habent, 
Gratia, Musa, tibi : nam tu solatia praebes ; 

Tu curae requies, tu medicina venis : 
Tu dux et comes es ; tu nos abducis ab Istro, 

In medioque mihi das Helicone locum. 120 

Tu mihi, quod rarum, vivo sublime dedisti 

Nomen, ab exsequiis quod dare fama solet ; 
Nee, qui detrectat praesentia, livor iniquo 

Ullum de nostris dente momordit opus. 
Nam tulerint magnos quum secula nostra poetas, 125 

Non fuit ingenio fama maligna meo ; 
Quumque ego praeponam multos mihi, non minor illis 

Dicor, et in toto plurimus orbe legor. 
Si quid habent igitur vatum praesagia veri, 

Protinus ut moriar, non ero, terra, tuus. 130 

Sive favore tuli, sive hanc ego carmine famam 

Jure, tibi grates, candide lector, ago. 



P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

BUCOLICON LIBER. 



ECLOGA I. 

TITYRUS. 

MELIBOEUS. TITYRUS. 
MELIBOEUS. 

Tityre, tu patulae recubans sub tegmine fagi 
Silvestrem tenui Musam meditaris avena ; 
Nos patriae fines et dulcia linquimus arva : 
Nos patriam fugimus ; tu, Tityre, lentus in umbra 
Formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvas. 

TITYRUS. 

O Meliboee, deus nobis haec otia fecit. 
Namque erit ille mihi semper deus ; illius aram 
Saepe tener nostris ab ovilibus imbuet agnus. 
Ille meas errare boves, ut cernis, et ipsum 
Ludere, quae vellem, calamo permisit agresti. 

MELIBOEUS. 

Non equidem invideo ; miror magis : undique totis 
Usque adeo turbatur agris. En, ipse capellas 
Protinus aeger ago ; hanc etiam vix, Tityre, duco. 
Hie inter densas corylos modo namque gemellos, 
Spem gregis, ah ! silice in nuda connixa reliquit. 
Saepe malum hoc nobis, si mens non laeva fuisset, 
De coelo tactas memini praedicere quercus. 
[Saepe sinistra cava praedixit ab ilice cornix.] 
Sed tamen, iste deus qui sit, da, Tityre, nobis. 

5 



: 



66 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

TITYRUS. 

Urbem, quam dicunt Romam, Meliboee, putavi 20 

Stultus ego huic nostrae similem, quo saepe solemus 

Pastores ovium teneros depellere fetus. 

Sic canibus catulos similes, sic matribus haedos 

Noram, sic parvis componere magna solebam. 

Verum haec tantum alias inter caput extulit urbes, 25 

Quantum lenta solent inter viburna cupressi. 

MELIBOEUS. 

Et quae tanta fuit Romam tibi caussa videndi ? 

TITYRUS. 

Libertas ; quae sera, tamen respexit inertem, 

Candidior postquam tondenti barba cadebat ; 

Respexit tamen, et longo post tempore venit, 30 

Postquam nos Amaryllis habet, Galatea reliquit. 

Namque, fatebor enim, dum me Galatea tenebat, 

Nee spes libertatis erat, nee cura peculi. 

Quamvis multa meis exiret victima saeptis, 

Pinguis et ingratae premeretur caseus urbi, 35 

Non umquam gravis aere domum mihi dextra redibat. 

MELIBOEUS. 

Mirabar, quid maesta deos, Amarylli, vocares, 

Cui pendere sua patereris in arbore poma : 

Tityrus hinc aberat. Ipsae te, Tityre, pinus, 

Ipsi te fontes, ipsa haec arbusta vocabant. 40 

TITYRUS. 

Quid facerem ? neque servitio me exire licebat, 

Nee tam praesentes alibi cognoscere divos. 

Hie ilium vidi juvenem, Meliboee, quot annis 

Bis senos cui nostra dies altaria fumant. 

Hie mihi responsum primus dedit ille petenti : 45 

Pascite, ut ante, boves, pueri, submittite tauros. 

MELIBOEUS. 

Fortunate senex, ergo tua rura manebunt, 

Et tibi magna satis, quamvis lapis omnia nudus 

Limosoque palus obducat pascua junco ! 



BUCOLICA. ECL. -I. 67 

Non insueta graves tentabunt pabula fetas, 50 

Nee mala vicini pecoris contagia laedent. 

Fortunate senex, hie, inter flumina nota 

Et fontes sacros, frigus captabis opacum ! 

Hinc tibi, quae semper, vicino ab limite, saepes 

Hyblaeis apibus florem depasta salicti, 55 

Saepe levi somnum suadebit inire susurro ; 

Hinc alta sub rupe canet frondator ad auras ; 

Nee tamen interea raucae, tua cura, palumbes, 

Nee gemere aeria cessabit turtur ab ulmo. 

TITYRUS. 

Ante leves ergo pascentur in aethere cervi, 60 

Et freta destituent nudos in litore pisces, 

Ante, pererratis amborum finibus, exsul 

Aut Ararim Parthus bibet, aut Germania Tigrim, 

Quam nostro illius labatur pectore vultus. 

MELIBOEUS. 

At nos hinc alii sitientes ibimus Afros, 65 

Pars Scythiam et rapidum Cretae veniemus Oaxen, 

Et penitus toto divisos orbe Britannos. 

En umquam patrios longo post tempore fines, 

Pauperis et tuguri congestum caespite culmen, 

Post aliquot, mea regna videns, mirabor aristas ? 70 

Impius haec tarn culta novalia miles habebit ? 

Barbarus has segetes ? En, quo discordia cives 

Produxit miseros ! en, quis consevimus agros ! 

Insere nunc, Meliboee, piros, pone ordine vites. 

Ite meae, felix quondam pecus, ite capellae. 75 

Non ego vos posthac, viridi projectus in antro, 

Dumosa pendere procul de rupe videbo ; 

Carmina nulla canam ; non, me pascente, capellae, 

Florentem cytisum et salices carpetis amaras. 

TITYRUS. 

Hie tamen hanc mecum poteras requiescere noctem 80 
Fronde super viridi : sunt nobis mitia poma, 
Castaneae molles, et pressi copia lactis ; 



68 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Et jam summa procul villarum culmina fumant, 
Majoresque cadunt altis de montibus umbrae. 



ECLOGA III. 

PALAEMON. 

MENALCAS. DAMOETAS. PALAEMON. 

MENALCAS. 

Die mihi, Damoeta, cujum pecus ? an Meliboei ? 

DAMOETAS. 

Non, verum Aegonis ; nuper mihi tradidit Aegon. 

MENALCAS. 

Infelix o semper, oves, pecus ! ipse Neaeram 
Dum fovet, ac, ne me sibi praeferat ilia, veretur, 
Hie alienus oves custos bis mulget in hora, 
Et sucus pecori et lac subducitur agnis. 

DAMOETAS. 

Parcius ista viris tamen objicienda memento. 
Novimus, et qui te, transversa tuentibus hircis, 
Et quo — sed faciles Nymphae risere — sacello. 

MENALCAS. 

Turn, credo, quum me arbustum videre Miconis 
Atque mala vites incidere falce novellas. 

DAMOETAS. 

Aut hie ad veteres fagos quum Daphnidis arcum 
Fregisti et calamos : quae tu, perverse Menalca, 
Et, quum vidisti puero donata, dolebas, 
Et, si non aliqua nocuisses, mortuus esses. 

MENALCAS. 

Quid domini faciant, audent quum talia fures ! 
Non ego te vidi Damonis, pessime, caprum 
Excipere insidiis, multum latrante Lycisca ? 
Et quum clamarem : Quo nunc se proripit ille ? 
Tityre, coge pecus ; tu post carecta latebas. 



BUCOLICA. ECL. III. 69 

DAMOETAS. 

An mihi cantando victus non redderet ille, 
Quern mea carminibus meruisset fistula caprum ? 
Si nescis, meus ille caper fuit ; et mihi Damon 
Ipse fatebatur : sed reddere posse negabat. 

MENALCAS. 

Cantando tu ilium ? aut umquam tibi fistula cera 25 

Juncta fuit ? non tu in triviis, indocte, solebas 
Stridenti miserum stipula disperdere carmen ? 

DAMOETAS. 

Vis ergo, inter nos, quid possit uterque, vicissim 
Experiamur ? ego hanc vitulam — ne forte recuses, 
Bis venit ad mulctram, binos alit ubere fetus — 30 

Depono : tu die, mecum quo pignore certes. 

MENALCAS. 

De grege non ausim quicquam deponere tecum : 

Est mihi namque domi pater, est injusta noverca ; 

Bisque die numerant ambo pecus, alter et haedos. 

Verum, id quod multo tute ipse fatebere majus, 35 

Insanire libet quoniam tibi, pocula ponam 

Fagina, caelatum divini opus Alcimedontis : 

Lenta quibus torno facili superaddita vitis 

Diffusos hedera vestit pallente corymbos. 

In medio duo signa, Conon, et — quis fuit alter, 4 o 

Descripsit radio totum qui gentibus orbem, 

Tempora quae messor, quae curvus arator haberet ? 

Necdum illis labra admovi, sed condita servo. 

DAMOETAS. 

Et nobis idem Alcimedon duo pocula fecit, 

Et molli circum est ansas amplexus acantho, 45 

Orpheaque in medio posuit silvasque sequentes. 

Necdum illis labra admovi, sed condita servo. 

Si ad vitulam spectas, nihil est, quod pocula laudes. 

MENALCAS. 

Nunquam hodie effugies ; veniam, quocumque vocaris. 
Audiat haec tantum — vel qui venit, ecce, Palaemon. 50 






70 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Efficiam posthac ne quemquam voce lacessas. 

DAMOETAS. 

Quin age, si quid habes, in me mora non erit ulla, 
Nee quemquam fugio : tantum, vicine Palaemon, 
Sensibus haec imis — res est non parva — reponas. 

PALAEMON. 

Dicite, quandoquidem in molli consedimus herba. 55 

Et nunc omnis ager, nunc omnis parturit arbos ; 
Nunc frondent silvae ; nunc formosissimus annus. 
Incipe, Damoeta • tu deinde sequere, Menalca. 
Alternis dicetis ; amant alterna Camenae. 

DAMOETAS. 

Ab Jove principium, Musae ; Jovis omnia plena ; & 

Hie colit terras ; illi mea carmina curae. 

MENALCAS. 

Et me Phoebus amat ; Phoebo sua semper apud me 
Munera sunt, lauri et suave rubens hyacinthus. 

DAMOETAS. 

Malo me Galatea petit, lasciva puella, 

Et fugit ad salices, et se cupit ante videri. 65 

MENALCAS. 

At mihi sese offert ultro, meus ignis, Amyntas, 
Notior ut jam sit canibus non Delia nostris. 

DAMOETAS. 

Parta meae Veneri sunt munera : namque notavi 
Ipse locum, aeriae quo congessere palumbes. 

MENALCAS. 

Quod potui, puero silvestri ex arbore lecta 70 

Aurea mala decern misi ; eras altera mittam. 

DAMOETAS. 

O quoties et quae nobis Galatea locuta est ! 
Partem aliquam, venti, divum referatis ad aures ! 

MENALCAS. 

Quid prodest, quod me ipse animo non spernis, Amynta, 
Si, dum tu sectaris apros, ego retia servo ? 75 



BUCOLICA. ECL. III. 7 1 

DAMOETAS. 

Phyllida mitte mihi : meus est natalis, Iolla ; 
Quum faciam vitula pro frugibus, ipse venito. 

MENALCAS. 

Phyllida amo ante alias ; nam me discedere flevit, 
Et longum Formose, vale, vale, in quit, Iolla. 

DAMOETAS. 

Triste lupus stabulis, maturis frugibus imbres, 80 

Arboribus venti, nobis Amaryllidis irae. 

MENALCAS. 

Dulce satis humor, depulsis arbutus haedis, 
Lenta salix feto pecori, mihi solus Amyntas. 

DAMOETAS. 

Pollio amat nostram, quamvis est rustica, Musam : 
Pierides, vitulam lectori pascite vestro. 85 

MENALCAS. 

Pollio et ipse facit nova carmina : pascite taurum, 
Jam cornu petat et pedibus qui spargat arenam. 

DAMOETAS. 

Qui te, Pollio, amat, veniat, quo te quoque gaudet 
Mella rluant illi, ferat et rubus asper amomum. 

MENALCAS. 

Qui Bavium non odit, amet tua carmina, Maevi, 90 

Atque idem jungat vulpes et mulgeat hircos. 

DAMOETAS. 

Qui legitis flores et humi nascentia fraga, 
Frigidus, o pueri, fugite hinc, latet anguis in herba. 

MENALCAS. 

Parcite, oves, nimium procedere : non bene ripae 
Creditur; ipse aries etiam nunc vellera siccat. 95 

DAMOETAS. 

Tityre, pascentes a flumine reice capellas : 
Ipse, ubi tempus erit, omnes in fonte lavabo. 

MENALCAS. 

Cogite oves, pueri ; si lac praeceperit aestus, 
Ut nuper, frustra pressab'mus ubera palmis. 



72 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

DAMOETAS. 

Heu, heu, quam pingui macer est mihi taurus in ervo ! 
Idem amor exitium pecori pecorisque magistro. 

MENALCAS. 

His certe neque amor caussa est ; vix ossibus haerent. 
Nescio quis teneros oculus mihi fascinat agnos. 

DAMOETAS. 

Die, quibus in terris — et eris mihi magnus Apollo — 
Tres pateat coeli spatium non amplius ulnas. 

MENALCAS. 

Die, quibus in terris inscripti nomina regum 
Nascantur flores, et Phyllida solus habeto. 

PALAEMON. 

Non nostrum inter vos tantas componere lites. 
Et vitula tu dignus, et hie, et quisquis amores 
Aut metuet dulces, aut experietur amaros. 
Claudite jam rivos, pueri : sat prata biberunt 



ECLOGA IV. 

POLLIO. 

Sicelides Musae, paulo majora canamus ! 
Non omnes arbusta juvant humilesque myricae ; 
Si canimus silvas, silvae sint Consule dignae. 
Ultima Cumaei venit jam carminis aetas ; 
Magnus ab integro saeclorum nascitur ordo. 
Jam redit et Virgo, redeunt Saturnia regna : 
Jam nova progenies coelo demittitur alto. 
Tu modo nascenti puero, quo ferrea primum 
Desinet ac toto surget gens aurea mundo, 
Casta fave Lucina : tuus jam regnat Apollo. 
Teque adeo decus hoc aevi, te Consule, inibit, 
Pollio, et incipient magni procedere menses ; 
Te duce, si qua manent sceleris vestigia nostri, 
Irrita perpetua solvent formidine terras. 



BUCOLICA. ECL. IV. 73 

Ille deum vitam accipiet divisque videbit 15 

Permixtos heroas et ipse videbitur illis, 

Pacatumque reget patriis virtutibus orbem. 

At tibi prima, puer, nullo munuscula cultu 

Errantes hederas passim cum bacchare tellus 

Mixtaque ridenti colocasia fundet acantho. 20 

Ipsae lacte domum referent distenta capellae 

Ubera, nee magnos metuent armenta leones. 

Ipsa tibi blandos fundent cunabula flores. 

Occidet et serpens, et fallax herba veneni 

Occidet ; Assyrium vulgo nascetur amomum. 25 

At simul heroum laudes et facta parentis 

Jam legere et quae sit poteris cognoscere virtus, 

Molii paulatim flavescet campus arista, 

Incultisque rubens pendebit sentibus uva, 

Et durae quercus sudabunt roscida mella. 30 

Pauca tamen suberunt priscae vestigia fraudis, 

Quae tentare Thetim ratibus, quae cingere muris 

Oppida, quae jubeant telluri infindere sulcos. 

Alter erit turn Tiphys, et altera quae vehat Argo 

Delectos heroas ; erunt etiam altera bella, 35 

Atque iterum ad Trojam magnus mittetur Achilles. 

Hinc, ubi jam firmata virum te fecerit aetas, 

Cedet et ipse mari vector, nee nautica pinus 

Mutabit merces : omnis feret omnia tellus. 

Non rastros patietur humus, non vinea falcem ; 40 

Robustus quoque jam tauris juga solvet arator; 

Nee varios discet mentiri lana colores, 

Ipse sed in pratis aries jam suave rubenti 

Murice, jam croceo mutabit vellera luto \ 

Sponte sua sandyx pascentes vestiet agnos. 45 

Talia saecla, suis dixerunt, currite, fusis 

Concordes stabili fatorum numine Parcae. 

Aggredere o magnos — aderit jam tempus — honores, 

Cara deum suboles, magnum Jovis incrementum ! 

Adspice convexo nutantem pondere mundum, s« 



74 P- VIRGILII MARONIS 

Terrasque tractusque maris coelumque profundum, 

Adspice, venture* laetantur ut omnia saeclo ! 

O mihi tam longae maneat pars ultima vitae, 

Spiritus et, quantum sat erit tua dicere facta : 

Non me carminibus vineet nee Thracius Orpheus, 55 

Nee Linus, huic mater quamvis atque huic pater adsit, 

Orphei Calliopea, Lino formosus Apollo. 

Pan etiam, Arcadia mecum si judice certet, 

Pan etiam Arcadia dicat se judice victum. 

Incipe, parve puer, risu cognoscere matrem : 60 

Matri longa decern tulerunt fastidia menses ; 

Incipe, parve puer : cui non risere parentes, 

Nee deus hunc mensa, dea nee dignata cubili est. 



ECLOGA V. 
DAPHNIS. 

MENALCAS. MOPSUS. 
MENALCAS. 

Cur non, Mopse, boni quoniam convenimus ambo, 
Tu calamos inflare leves, ego dicere versus, 
Hie corylis mixtas inter considimus ulmos ? 

MOPSUS. 

Tu major ; tibi me est aequum parere, Menalca, 
Sive sub incertas Zephyris motantibus umbras, 
Sive antro potius succedimus. Adspice, ut antrum 
Silvestris raris sparsit labrusca racemis. 

MENALCAS. 

Montibus in nostris solus tibi certat Amyntas. 

MOPSUS. 

Quid, si idem certet Phoebum superare canendo ? 

MENALCAS. 

Incipe, Mopse, prior, si quos aut Phyllidis ignes, 
Aut Alconis habes laudes, aut jurgia Codri. 



BUCOLICA. ECL. V. 75 

Incipe j pascentes servabit Tityrus haedos. 

MOPSUS. 

Immo haec, in viridi nuper quae cortice fagi 

Carmina descripsi et modulans alterna notavi, 

Experiar : tu deinde jubeto lit certet Amyntas. 15 

MEXALCAS. 

Lenta salix quantum pallenti cedit olivae, 
Puniceis humilis quantum saliunca rosetis, 
Judicio nostro tantum tibi cedit Amyntas. 

MOPSUS. 

Sed tu desine plura, puer ; successimus antro. 

Exstinctum Nymphae crudeli funere Daphnim 20 

Flebant j vos coryli testes et flumina Nymphis ; 
Quum complexa sui corpus miserabile nati 
Atque deos atque astra vocat crudelia mater. 
Non ulli pastos illis egere diebus 

Frigida, Daphni, boves ad flumina ; nulla nee amnem 23 
Libavit quadrupes, nee graminis attigit herbam. 
Daphni, tuum Poenos etiam ingemuisse leones 
Interitum montesque feri silvaeque loquuntur. 
Daphnis et Armenias curru subjungere tigres 
Instituit, Daphnis thiasos inducere Bacchi 3° 

Et foliis lentas intexere mollibus hastas. 
Vitis ut arboribus decori est, ut vitibus uvae, 
Ut gregibus tauri, segetes ut pinguibus arvis, 
Tu decus omne tuis. Postquam te fata tulerunt, 
Ipsa Pales agros atque ipse reliquit Apollo. 35 

Grand ia saepe quibus mandavimus hordea sulcis, 
Infelix lolium et steriles nascuntur avenae \ 
Pro molli viola, pro purpureo narcisso, 
Carduus et spinis surgit paliurus acutis. 
Spargite humum foliis, inducite fontibus umbras, 40 

Pastores ; mandat fieri sibi talia Daphnis ; 
Et tumulum facite, et tumulo superaddite carmen : 
Daphnis ego in silvis, hinc usque ad sidera notus, 
Formosi pecoris custos, formosior ipse. 



76 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

MENALCAS. 

Tale tuum carmen nobis, divine poeta, 45 

Quale sopor fessis in gramine, quale per aestum 

Dulcis aquae saliente sitim restinguere rivo. 

Nee calamis solum aequiparas, sed voce magistrum. 

Fortunate puer, tu nunc eris alter ab illo. 

Nos tamen haec quocumque modo tibi nostra vicissim 50 

Dicemus, Daphnimque tuum tollemus ad astra ; 

Daphnin ad astra feremus : amavit nos quoque Daphnis. 

MOPSUS. 

An quicquam nobis tali sit munere majus ? 

Et puer ipse fuit cantari dignus, et ista 

Jam pridem Stimicon laudavit carmina nobis. 55 

MENALCAS. 

Candidus insuetum miratur limen Olympi 

Sub pedibusque videt nubes et sidera Daphnis. 

Ergo alacris silvas et cetera rura voluptas 

Panaque pastoresque tenet Dryadasque puellas. 

Nee lupus insidias pecori, nee retia cervis 60 

Ulla dolum meditantur ; amat bonus otia Daphnis. 

Ipsi laetitia voces ad sidera jactant 

Intonsi montes ; ipsae jam carmina rupes, 

Ipsa sonant arbusta : deus, deus ille, Menalca ! 

Sis bonus o felixque tuis ! en quattuor aras : 65 

Ecce duas tibi, Daphni, duas altaria Phoebo. 

Pocula bina novo spumantia lacte quot annis 

Craterasque duos statuam tibi pinguis oliva, 

Et multo in primis hilarans convivia Baccho, 

Ante focum, si frigus erit, si messis, in umbra, 7° 

Vina novum fundam calathis Ariusia nectar. 

Cantabunt mihi Damoetas et Lyctius Aegon ; 

Saltantes Satyros imitabitur Alphesiboeus. 

Haec tibi semper erunt, et quum sollemnia vota 

Reddemus Nymphis, et quum lustrabimus agros. 75 

Dum juga montis aper, fluvios dum piscis amabit, 

Dumque thymo pascentur apes, dum rore cicadae, 



BUCOLICA. ECL. VII. 77 

Semper honos nomenque timm laudesque manebunt. 

Ut Baccho Cererique, tibi sic vota quot annis 

Agricolae facient ; damnabis tu quoque votis. 80 

MOPSUS. 

Quae tibi, quae tali reddam pro carmine dona ? 
Nam neque me tantum venientis sibilus austri, 
Nee percussa juvant fluctu tarn litora, nee quae 
Saxosas inter decurrunt flumina valles. 

MENALCAS. 

Hac te nos fragili donabimus ante cicuta. 85 

Haec nos, Formosum Corydon ardebat Alexim, • 
Haec eadem docuit, Cujum pecus ? an Meliboei ? 

MOPSUS. 

At tu sume pedum, quod, me quum saepe rogaret, 
Non tulit Antigenes — et erat rum dignus amari — 
Formosum paribus nodis atque aere, Menalca. 90 



ECLOGA VII. 

MELIBOEUS. 

MELIBOEUS. CORYDON. THYRSIS. 

MELIBOEUS. 

Forte sub arguta consederat ilice Daphnis, 

Compulerantque greges Corydon et Thyrsis in unum, 

Thyrsis oves, Corydon distentas lacte capellas, 

Ambo florentes aetatibus, Arcades ambo, 

Et cantare pares, et respondere parati. 

Hue mihi, dum teneras defendo a frigore myrtos, 

Vir gregis ipse caper deerraverat ; atque ego Daphnim 

Adspicio. Ille ubi me contra videt : Ocius, inquit, 

Hue ades, o Meliboee ! caper tibi salvus et haedi ; 

Et, si quid cessare potes, requiesce sub umbra. 

Hue ipsi potum venient per prata juvenci - 3 



78 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Hie virides ten era praetexit arundine ripas 

Mincius, eque sacra resonant examina quercu. 

Quidfacerem? neque ego Alcippen, nequePhyllidahabebam, 

Depulsos a lacte domi quae clauderet agnos ; is 

Et certamen erat, Corydon cum Thyrside, magnum. 

Posthabui tamen illorum mea seria ludo. 

Alternis igitur contendere versibus ambo 

Coepere ; alternos Musae meminisse volebant. 

Hos Corydon, illos referebat in ordine Thyrsis. *o 

CORYDON. 

Nymphae, noster amor, Libethrides, aut mihi carmen, 
Quale meo Codro, concedite ; proxima Phoebi 
Versibus ille facit ; aut, si non possumus omnes, 
Hie arguta sacra pendebit fistula pinu. 

THYRSIS. 

Pastores, hedera nascentem ornate poetam, 25 

Arcades, invidia rumpantur ut ilia Codro ; 
Aut, si ultra placitum laudarit, bacchare frontem 
Cingite, ne vati noceat mala lingua future 

CORYDON. 

Saetosi caput hoc apri tibi, Delia, parvus 

Et ramosa Micon vivacis cornua cervi. 30 

Si proprium hoc fuerit, levi de marmore tota 

Puniceo stabis suras evincta cothurno. 

THYRSIS. 

Sinum lactis et haec te liba, Priape, quot annis 
Exspectare sat est : custos es pauperis horti. 
Nunc te marmoreum pro tempore fecimus ; at tu, 3s 

Si fetura gregem suppleverit, aureus esto. 

CORYDON. 

Nerine Galatea, thymo mihi dulcior Hyblae, 

Candidior eyenis, hedera formosior alba, 

Quum primum pasti repetent praesepia tauri, 

Si qua tui Corydonis habet te cura, venito. 40 

THYRSIS. 

Immo ego Sardoniis videar tibi amarior herbis, 



BUCOLICA. ECL. VII. 79 

Horridior rusco, projecta vilior alga, 

Si mihi non haec lux toto jam longior anno est. 

Ite domum pasti, si quis pudor, ite juvenci. 

CORYDON. 

Muscosi fontes et somno mollior herba, 45 

Et quae vos rara viridis tegit arbutus umbra, 
Solstitium pecori defendite ; jam venit aestas 
Torrida, jam laeto turgent in palmite gemmae. 

THYRSIS. 

Hie focus et taedae pingues, hie plurimus ignis 
Semper, et adsidua postes fuligine nigri ; 5° 

Hie tantum Boreae curamus frigora, quantum 
Aut numerum lupus, aut torrentia flumina ripas. 

CORYDON. 

Stant et juniperi et castaneae hirsutae ; 
Strata jacent passim sua quaque sub arbore poma ; 
Omnia nunc rident ; at si formosus Alexis 55 

Montibus his abeat, videas et flumina sicca. 

THYRSIS. 

Aret ager ; vitio moriens sitit aeris herba ; 

Liber pampineas invidit collibus umbras : 

Phyllidis adventu nostrae nemus omne virebit, 

Juppiter et laeto descend et plurimus imbri. 60 

CORYDON. 

Populus Alcidae gratissima, vitis Iaccho, 
Formosae myrtus Veneri, sua laurea Phoebo ; 
Phyllis amat corylos ; illas dum Phyllis amabit, 
Nee myrtus vincet corylos, nee laurea Phoebi. 

THYRSIS. 

Fraxinus in silvis pulcherrima, pinus in hortis, 65 

Populus in fluviis, abies in montibus altis ; 
Saepius at si me, Lycida formose, revisas, 
Fraxinus in silvis cedat tibi, pinus in hortis. 

MELIBOEUS. 

Haec memini, et victum frustra contendere Thyrsim. 

Ex illo Corydon Corydon est tempore nobis. 70 



80 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

ECLOGA IX. 

MOERIS. 

LYCIDAS. MOERIS. 
LYCIDAS. 

Quo te, Moeri, pedes ? an, quo via ducit, in urbem ? 

MOERIS. 

O Lycida, vivi pervenimus, advena nostri, 
Quod numquam veriti sumus, ut possessor agelli 
Diceret : Haec mea sunt ; veteres migrate coloni. 
Nunc victi, tristes, quoniam Fors omnia versat, 5 

Hos illi — quod nee vertat bene — mittimus haedos. 

LYCIDAS. 

Certe equidem audieram, qua se subducere colles 
Incipiunt, mollique jugum demittere clivo, 
Usque ad aquam et veteres, jam fracta cacumina, fagos 
Omnia carminibus vestrum servasse Menalcan. 10 

MOERIS. 

Audieras, et fama fuit ; sed carmina tantum 

Nostra valent, Lycida, tela inter Martia, quantum 

Chaonias dicunt aquila veniente columbas. 

Quod nisi me quacumque novas incidere lites 

Ante sinistra cava monuisset ab ilice cornix, 15 

Nee tuus hie Moeris, nee viveret ipse Menalcas. 

LYCIDAS. 

Heu, cadit in quemquam tantum scelus ? heu, tua nobis 

Paene simul tecum solatia rapta, Menalca ? 

Quis caneret Nymphas ? quis humum florentibus herbis 

Spargeret, aut viridi fontes induceret umbra ? 20 

Vel quae sublegi tacitus tibi carmina nuper, 

Cum te ad delicias ferres, Amaryllida, nostras ? 

"Tityre, dum redeo — brevis est via — pasce capellas, 

Et potum pastas age, Tityre, et inter agendum 

Occursare capro — cornu ferit ille — caveto." 25 



BUCOLICA. ECL. IX. 8 1 

MOERIS. 

Immo haec, quae Varo necdum perfecta canebat : 
" Vare, tuum nomen, superet modo Mantua nobis, 
Mantua, vae, miserae nimium vicina Cremonae, 
Cantantes sublime ferent ad sidera cycni." 

LYCIDAS. 

Sic tua Cyrneas fugiant examina taxos, 3° 

Sic cytiso pastae distendant ubera vaccae, 

Incipe, si quid habes. Et me fecere poetam 

Pierides ; sunt et mihi carmina ; me quoque dicunt 

Vatem pastores ; sed non ego credulus illis. 

Nam neque adhuc Vario videor, nee dicere Cinna 35 

Digna, sed argutos inter strepere anser olores. 

MOERIS. 

Id quidem ago et tacitus, Lycida, mecum ipse voluto, 
Si valeam meminisse ; neque est ignobile carmen. 
" Hue ades, o Galatea ; quis est nam ludus in undis ? 
Hie ver purpureum, varios hie flumina circum 40 

Fundit humus flores, hie Candida populus antro 
Imminet, et lentae texunt umbracula vites ; 
Hue ades ; insani feriant sine litora fluctus." 

LYCIDAS. 

Quid, quae te pura solum sub nocte canentem 

Audieram ? numeros memini, si verba tenerem. 45 

MOERIS. 

" Daphni, quid antiquos signorum suspicis ortus ? 

Ecce Dionaei processit Caesaris astrum, 

Astrum, quo segetes gauderent frugibus, et quo 

Duceret apricis in collibus uva colorem. 

Insere, Daphni, piros ; carpent tua poma nepotes." 50 

Omnia fert aetas, animum quoque : saepe ego longos 

Cantando puerum memini me condere soles : 

Nunc oblita mihi tot carmina ; vox quoque Moerim 

Jam fugit ipsa \ lupi Moerim videre priores. 

Sed tamen ista satis referet tibi saepe Menalcas. 55 

6 



82 P. VIRGILII MARONIS BUCOLICA. ECL. IX. 

LYCIDAS. 

Caussando nostros in longum ducis amores. 

Et nunc omne tibi stratum silet aequor, et omnes, 

Aspice, ventosi ceciderunt murmuris aurae ; 

Hinc adeo media est nobis via ; namque sepulchrum 

Incipit apparere Bianoris : hie, ubi densas 60 

Agricolae stringunt frondes, hie, Moeri, canamus ; 

Hie haedos depone, tamen veniemus in urbem. 

Aut si, nox pluviam ne colligat ante, veremur, 

Cantantes licet usque — minus via laedit — eamus ; 

Cantantes ut eamus, ego hoc te fasce levabo. 65 

MOERIS. 

Desine plura, puer, et quod nunc instat agamus ; 
Carmina turn melius, cum venerit ipse, canemus. 



P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

GEORGICA. 

LIBER I. 

Quid faciat laetas segetes, quo sidere terrain 
Vertere, Maecenas, ulmisque adjungere vites 
Conveniat, quae cura bourn, qui cultus habendo 
Sit pecori, apibus quanta experientia parcis, 
Hinc canere incipiam. Vos, o clarissima mundi 
Lumina, labentem coelo quae ducitis annum ; 
Liber et alma Ceres, vestro si munere tellus 
Chaoniam pingui glandem mutavit arista, 
Poculaque inventis Acheloia miscuit uvis ; 
Et vos, agrestum praesentia numina, Fauni, 
Ferte simul Faunique pedem Dryadesque puellae : 
Munera vestra cano. Tuque o, cui prima frementem 
Fudit equum magno tellus percussa tridenti, 
Neptune ; et cultor nemorum, cui pinguia Ceae 
Ter centum nivei tondent dumeta juvenci ; 
Ipse, nemus linquens patrium saltusque Lycaei, 
Pan, ovium custos, tua si tibi Maenala curae, 
Adsis, o Tegeaee, favens, oleaeque Minerva 
Inventrix, uncique puer monstrator aratri, 
Et teneram ab radice ferens, Silvane, cupressum, 
Dique deaeque omnes, studium quibus arva tueri, 
Quique novas alitis non ullo semine fruges, 
Quique satis largum coelo demittitis imbrem ; 
Tuque adeo, quem mox quae sint habitura deorum 
Concilia, incertum est, urbesne invisere, Caesar, 



84 P- VIRGILII MARONIS 

Terrarumque velis curam, et te maximus orbis 

Auctorem frugum tempestatumque potentem 

Accipiat, cingens materna tempora myrto, 

An deus immensi venias maris, ac tua nautae 

Numina sola colant, tibi serviat ultima Thule, 30 

Teque sibi generum Tethys emat omnibus undis, 

Anne novum tardis sidus te mensibus addas, 

Qua locus Erigonen inter Chelasque sequentes 

Panditur ; ipse tibi jam brachia contrahit ardens 

Scorpios, et coeli justa plus parte reliquit ; 35 

Quidquid eris, — nam te nee sperant Tartara regem, 

Nee tibi regnandi veniat tarn dim cupido ; 

Quamvis Elysios miretur Graecia campos, 

Nee repetita sequi curet Proserpina matrem — 

Da facilem cursum, atque audacibus adnue coeptis, 4 ° 

Ignarosque viae mecum miseratus agrestes 

Ingredere, et votis jam nunc adsuesce vocari. 

Vere novo, gelidus canis quum montibus humor 
Liquitur et Zephyro putris se glaeba resolvit, 
Depresso incipiat jam turn mihi taurus aratro 45 

Ingemere, et sulco attritus splendescere vomer. 
Ilia seges demum votis respondet avari 
Agricolae, bis quae solem, bis frigora sensit ; 
Illius immensae ruperunt horrea messes. 
At prius ignotum ferro- quam scindimus aequor, so 

Ventos et varium coeli praediscere morem 
Cura sit ac patrios cultusque habitusque locorum, 
Et quid quaeque ferat regio et quid quaeque recuset. 
Hie segetes, illic veniunt felicius uvae ; 
Arborei fetus alibi, atque injussa virescunt 55 

Gramina. Nonne vides, croceos ut Tmolus odores, 
India mittit ebur, molles sua tura Sabaei, 
At Chalybes nudi ferrum, virosaque Pontus 
Castorea, Eliadum palmas Epiros equarum ? 
Continuo has leges aeternaque foedera certis 60 

Imposuit natura locis, quo tempore primum 



GEORGICON LIB. I. 85 

Deucalion vacuum lapides jactavit in orbem, 

Unde homines nati, durum genus. Ergo age, terrae 

Pingue solum primis extemplo a mensibus anni 

Fortes invertant tauri, glaebasque jacentes 65 

Pulverulenta coquat maturis solibus aestas ; 

At si non fuerit tellus fecunda, sub ipsum 

Arcturum tenui sat erit suspendere sulco : 

Illic, officiant laetis ne frugibus herbae, 

Hie, sterilem exiguus ne deserat humor arenam. 70 

Alternis idem tonsas cessare novales, 
Et segnem patiere situ durescere campum ; 
Aut ibi flava seres mutato sidere farra, 
Unde prius laetum siliqua quassante legumen 
Aut tenuis fetus viciae tristisque lupini 75 

Sustuleris fragiles calamos silvamque sonantem. 
Urit enim lini campum seges, urit avenae, 
Urunt Lethaeo perfusa papavera somno : 
Sed tamen alternis facilis labor ; arida tantum 
Ne saturare fimo pingui pudeat sola, neve 80 

Effetos cinerem immundum jactare per agros. 
Sic quoque mutatis requiescunt fetibus arva, 
Nee nulla interea est inaratae gratia terrae. 
Saepe etiam steriles incendere profuit agros 
Atque levem stipulam crepitantibus urere flammis : 85 

Sive inde occultas vires et pabula terrae 
Pinguia concipiunt ; sive illis omne per ignem 
Excoquitur vitium, atque exsudat inutilis humor ; 
Seu plures calor ille vias et caeca relaxat 
Spiramenta, novas veniat qua sucus in herbas ; 90 

Seu durat magis, et venas adstringit hiantes, 
Ne tenues pluviae, rapidive potentia solis 
Acrior, aut Boreae penetrabile frigus adurat. 

Multum adeo, rastris glaebas qui frangit inertes 
Vimineasque trahit crates, juvat arva; neque ilium 95 

Flava Ceres alto nequidquam spectat Olympo j 
Et qui, proscisso quae suscitat aequore terga, 



86 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Rursus in obliquum verso perrumpit aratro, 
Exercetque frequens tellurem, atque imperat arvis. 

Humida solstitia atque hiemes orate serenas, ioo 

Agricolae ; hiberno laetissima pulvere farra, 
Laetus ager : nullo tantum se Mysia cultu 
Jactat et ipsa suas mirantur Gargara messes. 
Quid dicam, jacto qui semine comminus arva 
Insequitur cumulosque ruit male pinguis arenae, 105 

Deinde satis fluvium inducit rivosque sequentes, 
Et, quum exustus ager morientibus aestuat herbis, 
Ecce supercilio clivosi tramitis undam 
Elicit ? ilia cadens raucum per levia murmur 
Saxa ciet, scatebrisque arentia temperat arva. no 

Quid, qui, ne gravidis procumbat culmus aristis, 
Luxuriem segetum tenera depascit in herba, 
Quum primum sulcos aequant sata ? quique paludis 
Collectum humorem bibula deducit arena, 
Praesertim incertis si mensibus amnis abundans 115 

Exit, et obducto late tenet omnia limo, 
Unde cavae tepido sudant humore lacunae ? 

Nee tamen, haec quum sint hominumque boumque labores 
Versando terram experti, nihil improbus anser 
Strymoniaeque grues et amaris intuba ribris 120 

Officiunt aut umbra nocet. Pater ipse colendi 
Haud facilem esse viam voluit, primusque per artem 
Movit agros, curis acuens mortalia corda, 
Nee torpere gravi passus sua regna veterno. 
Ante Jovem nulli subigebant arva coloni ; 125 

Ne signare quidem aut partiri limite campum 
Fas erat : in medium quaerebant, ipsaque tellus 
Omnia liberius, nullo poscente, ferebat. 
Ille malum virus serpentibus addidit atris, 
Praedarique lupos jussit, pontumque moveri, 130 

Mellaque decussit foliis, ignemque removit, 
Et passim rivis currentia vina repressit, 
Ut varias usus meditando extunderet artes 



GEORGICON LIB. I. 87 

Paulatim, et sulcis frumenti quaereret herbam, 

Ut silicis venis abstrusum excuderet ignem. 135 

Tunc alnos primum fluvii sensere cavatas ; 

Navita turn stellis numeros et nomina fecit, 

Pleiadas, Hyadas, claramque Lycaonis Arcton ; 

Turn laqueis captare feras, et fallere visco 

Inventum, et magnos canibus circumdare saltus. 140 

Atque alius latum funda jam verberat amnem, 

Alta petens, pelagoque alius trahit humida lina. 

Turn ferri rigor atque argutae lamina serrae, — 

Nam primi cuneis scindebant fissile lignum — 

Turn variae venere artes. Labor omnia vicit 14s 

Inprobus et duris urguens in rebus egestas. 

Prima Ceres ferro mortales vertere terram 

Instituit, quum jam glandes atque arbuta sacrae 

Deficerent silvae et victum Dodona negaret. 

Mox et frumentis labor additus, ut mala culmos 150 

Esset robigo segnisque horreret in arvis 

Carduus ; intereunt segetes, subit aspera silva, 

Lappaeque tribulique, interque nitentia culta 

Infelix lolium et steriles dominantur avenae. 

Quod nisi et assiduis herbam insectabere rastris, 155 

Et sonitu terrebis aves, et ruris opaci 

Falce premes umbram, votisque vocaveris imbrem, 

Heu, magnum alterius frustra spectabis acervum, 

Concussaque famen in silvis solabere quercu. 

Dicendum et, quae sint duris agrestibus arma, 160 

Quis sine nee potuere seri nee surgere messes : 
Vomis et inflexi primum grave robur aratri, 
Tardaque Eleusinae matris volventia plaustra, 
Tribulaque, traheaeque, et iniquo pondere rastri ; 
Virgea praeterea Celei vilisque supellex, 165 

Arbuteae crates et mystica vannus Iacchi. 
Omnia quae multo ante memor provisa repones, 
Si te digna manet divini gloria ruris. 
Continuo in silvis magna vi flexa domatur 



88 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

In burim et curvi formam accipit ulmus aratri. i 7 o 

Huic ab stirpe pedes temo protentus in octo, 

Binae aures, duplici aptantur dentalia dorso. 

Caeditur et tilia ante jugo levis, altaque fagus 

Stivaque, quae cursus a tergo torqueat imos ; 

Et suspensa focis explorat robora fumus. 17s 

Possum multa tibi veterum praecepta referre, 
Ni refugis tenuesque piget cognoscere curas. 
Area cum primis ingenti aequanda cylindro 
Et vertenda manu et creta solidanda tenaci, 
Ne subeant herbae, neu pulvere victa fatiscat. 180 

Turn variae illudant pestes : saepe exiguus mus 
Sub terris posuitque domos atque horrea fecit ; 
Aut oculis capti fodere cubilia talpae ; 
Inventusque cavis bufo, et quae plurima terrae 
Monstra ferunt ; populatque ingentem farris acervum 185 
Curculio, atque inopi metuens formica senectae. 
Contemplator item, quum se nux plurima silvis 
Induet in florem et ramos curvabit olentes : 
Si superant fetus, pariter frumenta sequentur, 
Magnaque cum magno veniet tritura calore ; ' 190 

At si luxuria foliorum exuberat umbra, 
Nequidquam pingues palea teret area culmos. 
Semina vidi equidem multos medicare serentes 
Et nitro prius et nigra perfundere amurca, 
Grandior ut fetus siliquis fallacious esset, 195 

Et, quamvis igni exiguo, properata maderent. 
Vidi lecta diu et multo spectata labore 
Degenerare tamen, ni vis humana quot annis 
Maxima quaeque manu legeret. Sic omnia fatis 
In pejus mere, ac retro sublapsa referri ; 200 

Non aliter, quam qui adverso vix flumine lembum 
Remigiis subigit, si brachia forte remisit, 
Atque ilium in praeceps prono rapit alveus amni. 

Praeterea tam sunt Arcturi sidera nobis 
Haedorumque dies servandi et lucidus Anguis, 205 



GEORGICON LIB. I. 89 

Quam quibus in patriam ventosa per aequora vectis 

Pontus et ostriferi fauces tentantur Abydi. 

Libra die somnique pares ubi fecerit horas, 

Et medium luci atque umbris jam dividit orbem, 

Exercete, viri, tauros, serite hordea campis, 210 

Usque sub extremum brumae intractabilis imbrem ; 

Nee non et lini segetem et Cereale papaver 

Tempus humo tegere, et jamdudum incumbere aratris, 

Dum sicca tenure licet, dum nubila pendent. 

Vere fabis satio ; turn te quoque, Medica, putres 215 

Accipiunt sulci, et milio venit annua cura, 

Candidus auratis aperit quum cornibus annum 

Taurus, et adverso cedens Canis occidit astro. 

At si triticeam in messem robustaque farra 

Exercebis humum solisque instabis aristis, 220 

Ante tibi Eoae Atlantides abscondantur 

Gnosiaque ardentis decedat Stella Coronae, 

Debita quam sulcis committas semina, quamque 

Invitae properes anni spem credere terrae. 

Multi ante occasum Maiae coepere ; sed illos 225 

Exspectata seges vanis elusit aristis. 

Si vero viciamque seres vilemque phaselum 

Nee Pelusiacae curam aspernabere lentis, 

Haud obscura cadens mittet tibi signa Bootes : 

Incipe, et ad medias sementem extende pruinas. 230 

Idcirco certis dimensum partibus orbem 
Per duodena regit mundi Sol aureus astra. 
Quinque tenent coelum zonae ; quarum una corusco 
Semper sole rubens et torrida semper ab igni ; 
Quam circum extremae dextra laevaque trahuntur, 235 

Caerulea glacie concretae atque imbribus atris ; 
Has inter mediamque duae mortalibus aegris 
Munere concessae divum, et via secta per ambas, 
Obliquus qua se signorum verteret ordo. 
Mundus, ut ad Scythiam Rhipaeasque arduus arces 240 
Consurgit, premitur Libyae devexus in austros. 



90 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Hie vertex nobis semper sublimis ; at ilium 

Sub pedibus Styx atra videt Manesque profundi. 

Maximus hie flexu sinuoso elabitur Anguis 

Circum perque duas in morem fluminis Arctos, 245 

Arctos Oceani metuentes aequore tingui. 

Illic, ut perhibent, aut intempesta silet nox 

Semper, et obtenta densantur nocte tenebrae, 

Aut redit a nobis Aurora diemque reducit, 

Nosque ubi primus equis Oriens afflavit anhelis, 250 

Illic sera rubens accendit lumina Vesper. 

Hinc tempestates dubio praediscere coelo 

Possumus, hinc messisque diem tempusque serendi, 

Et quando infidum remis impellere marmor 

Conveniat, quando armatas deducere classes, 255 

Aut tempestivam silvis evertere pinum : 

Nee frustra signorum obitus speculamur et ortus, 

Temporibusque parem diversis quattuor annum. 

Frigidus agricolam si quando continet imber, 
Multa, forent quae mox coelo properanda sereno, 260 

Maturare datur : durum procudit arator 
Vomeris obtunsi dentem, cavat arbore lintres, 
Aut pecori signum aut numeros impressit acervis. 
Exacuunt alii vallos furcasque bicornes, 
Atque Amerina parant lentae retinacula viti. 265 

Nunc facilis rube a texatur fiscina virga ; 
Nunc torrete igni fruges, nunc frangite saxo. 
Quippe etiam festis quaedam exercere diebus 
Fas et jura sinunt : rivos deducere nulla 
Religio vetuit, segeti praetendere saepem, 270 

Insidias avibus moliri, incendere vepres, 
Balantumque gregem fluvio mersare salubri. 
Saepe oleo tardi costas agitator aselli 
Vilibus aut onerat pomis, lapidemque revertens 
Incusum aut atrae massam picis urbe reportat. 275 

Ipsa dies alios alio dedit ordine Luna 
Felices operum. Quintam fuge : pallidus Orcus ' 



GEORGICON LIB. I. 9 1 

Eumenidesque satae ; turn partu Terra nefando 

Coeumque Iapetumque creat, saevumque Typhoea, 

Et conjuratos coelum rescindere fratres. 280 

Ter sunt conati imponere Pelio Ossam 

Scilicet, atque Ossae frondosum involvere Olympum ; 

Ter Pater exstructos disjecit fulmine montes. 

Septima post decimam felix et ponere vitem, 

Et prensos domitare boves, et licia telae 285 

Addere ; nona fugae melior, contraria furtis. 

Multa adeo gelida melius se nocte dedere, 
Aut quum sole novo terras irrorat Eous. 
Nocte leves melius stipulae, nocte arida prata 
Tondentur ; noctes lentus non deficit humor. 290 

Et quidam seros hiberni ad luminis ignes 
Pervigilat, ferroque faces inspicat acuto ; 
Interea longum cantu solata laborem 
Arguto conjux percurrit pectine telas, 
Aut dulcis musti Vulcano decoquit humorem 295 

Et foliis undam trepidi despumat aeni. 
At rubicunda Ceres medio succiditur aestu* 
Et medio tostas aestu terit area fruges. 
Nudus ara, sere nudus ; hiems ignava colono. 
Frigoribus parto agricolae plerumque fruuntur, 300 

Mutuaque inter se laeti convivia curant ; 
Invitat genialis hiems curasque resolvit : 
Ceu pressae quum jam portum tetigere carinae, 
Puppibus et laeti nautae imposuere coronas. 
Sed tamen et quernas glandes turn stringere tempus 305 
Et lauri baccas oleamque cruentaque myrta ; 
Turn gruibus pedicas et retia ponere cervis, 
Auritosque sequi lepores j turn figere damas, 
Stuppea torquentem Balearis verbera fundae, 
Quum nix alta jacet, glaciem quum flumina trudunt. 310 

Quid tempestates autumni et sidera dicam, 
Atque, ubi jam breviorque dies et mollior aestas, 
Quae vigilanda viris ? vel quum ruit imbriferum ver, 



92 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Spicea jam campis quum messis inhorruit, et quum 

Frumenta in viridi stipula lactentia turgent ? 315 

Saepe ego, quum flavis messorem induceret arvis 

Agricola et fragili jam stringeret hordea culmo, 

Omnia ventorum concurrere proelia vidi, 

Quae gravidam late segetem ab radicibus imis 

Sublimem expulsam eruerent ; ita turbine nigro 320 

Ferret hiems culmumque levem stipulasque volantes. 

Saepe etiam immensum coelo venit agmen aquarum, 

Et foedam glomerant tempestatem imbribus atris 

Collectae ex alto nubes ; ruit arduus aether, 

Et pluvia ingenti sata laeta boumque labores 325 

Diluit ; implentur fossae, et cava flumina crescunt 

Cum sonitu, fervetque fretis spirantibus aequor. 

Ipse Pater media nimborum in nocte corusca 

Fulmina molitur dextra ; quo maxima motu 

Terra tremit, fugere ferae, et mortalia corda 33 o 

Per gentes humilis stravit pavor ; ille flagranti 

Aut Athon, aut Rhodopen, aut alta Ceraunia telo 

Dejicit ; ingemfnant austri et densissimus imber ; 

Nunc nemora ingenti vento, nunc litora plangunt. 

Hoc metuens, coeli menses et sidera serva, 335 

Frigida Saturni sese quo stella receptet, 

Quos ignis coeli Cyllenius erret in orbes. 

In primis venerare deos, atque annua magnae 

Sacra refer Cereri laetis operatus in herbis, 

Extremae sub casum hiemis, jam vere sereno. 34 o 

Turn pingues agni, et turn mollissima vina ; 

Turn somni dulces densaeque in montibus umbrae. 

Cuncta tibi Cererem pubes agrestis adoret, 

Cui tu lacte favos et miti dilue Baccho, 

Terque novas circum felix eat hostia fruges, 345 

Omnis quam chorus et socii comitentur ovantes, 

Et Cererem clamore vocent in tecta ; neque ante 

Falcem maturis quisquam supponat aristis, 

Quam Cereri torta redimitus tempora quercu 



GEORGICON LIB. I. 93 

Det motus incompositos et carmina dicat 35° 

Atque haec ut certis possemus discere signis, 
Aestusque, pluviasque, et agentes frigora ventos, 
Ipse Pater statuit, quid menstrua Luna moneret ; 
Quo signo caderent austri ; quid saepe videntes 
Agricolae propius stabulis armenta tenerent. 355 

Continuo, ventis surgentibus, aut freta ponti 
Incipiunt agitata tumescere et aridus altis 
Montibus audiri fragor, aut resonantia longe 
Litora misceri et nemorum increbrescere murmur. 
Jam sibi turn a curvis male temperat unda carinis, 360 

Quum medio celeres revolant ex aequore mergi 
Clamoremque ferunt ad litora, quumque marinae 
In sicco ludunt fulicae, notasque paludes 
Deserit atque altam supra volat ardea nubem. 
Saepe etiam Stellas, vento impendente, videbis 365 

Praecipites coelo labi, noctisque per umbram 
Flammarum longos a tergo albescere tractus ; 
Saepe levem paleam et frondes volitare caducas, 
Aut summa nantes in aqua colludere plumas. 
At Boreae de parte trucis quum fulminat, et quum 370 

Eurique Zephyrique tonat domus, omnia plenis 
Rura natant fossis, atque omnis navita ponto 
Humida vela legit. Numquam imprudentibus imber 
Obfuit : aut ilium surgentem vallibus imis 
Aeriae fugere grues, aut bucula coelum 375 

Suspiciens patulis captavit naribus auras, 
Aut arguta lacus circumvolitavit hirundo, 
Et veterem in limo ranae cecinere querelam. 
Saepius et tectis penetralibus extulit ova 
Angustum formica terens iter, et bibit ingens 380 

Arcus, et e pastu decedens agmine magno 
Corvorum increpuit densis exercitus alis. 
Jam varias pelagi volucres, et quae Asia circum 
Dulcibus in stagnis rimantur prata Caystri, 
Certatim largos humeris infundere rores, 385 



94 P- VIRGILII MARONIS 

Nunc caput objectare fretis, nunc currere in undas, 

Et studio incassum videas gestire lavandi. 

Turn cornix plena pluviam vocat improba voce 

Et sola in sicca secum spatiatur arena. 

Ne nocturna quidem carpentes pensa puellae 390 

Nescivere hiemem, testa quum ardente viderent 

Scintillare oleum et putres concrescere fungos. 

Nee minus ex imbri soles et aperta serena 
Prospicere et certis poteris cognoscere signis : 
Nam neque turn stellis acies obtunsa videtur, 395 

Nee fratris radiis obnoxia surgere Luna, 
Tenuia nee lanae per coelum vellera ferri ; 
Non tepidum ad solem pennas in litore pandunt 
Dilectae Thetidi alcyones, non ore solutos 
Immundi meminere sues jactare maniplos. 400 

At nebulae magis ima petunt campoque recumbunt, 
Solis et occasum servans de culmine summo 
Nequidquam seros exercet noctua cantus. 
Apparet liquido sublimis in aere Nisus, 
Et pro purpureo poenas dat Scylla capillo ; 405 

Quacumque ilia levem fugiens secat aethera pennis, 
Ecce inimicus, atrox, magno stridore per auras 
Insequitur Nisus ; qua se fert Nisus ad auras, 
Ilia levem fugiens raptim secat aethera pennis. 
Turn liquidas corvi presso ter gutture voces 410 

Aut quater ingeminant, et saepe cubilibus altis, 
Nescio qua praeter solitum dulcedine laeti, 
Inter se in foliis strepitant ; juvat imbribus actis 
Progeniem parvam dulcesque revisere nidos ; 
Haud, equidem credo, quia sit divinitus illis 415 

Ingenium aut rerum fato prudentia major ; 
Verum, ubi tempestas et coeli mobilis humor 
Mutavere vias et Juppiter uvidus austris 
Denset, erant quae rara modo, et quae densa, relaxat, 
Vertuntur species animorum, et pectora motus 420 

Nunc alios, alios, dum nubila ventus agebat, 



GEORGICON LIB. I. 95 

Concipiunt : hinc ille avium concentus in agris, 
Et laetae pecudes, et ovantes gutture corvi. 

Si vero solem ad rapidum lunasque sequentes 
Ordine respicies, numquam te crastina fallet 425 

Hora, neque insidiis noctis capiere serenae. 
Luna, revertentes quum primum colligit ignes, 
Si nigrum obscuro comprenderit aera cornu, 
Maximus agricolis pelagoque parabitur imber ; 
At si virgineum suffuderit ore ruborem, 43° 

Ventus erit \ vento semper rubet aurea Phoebe. 
Sin ortu quarto, namque is certissimus auctor, 
Pura neque obtunsis per coelum cornibus ibit, 
Torus et ille dies, et qui nascentur ab illo 
Exactum ad mensem, pluvia ventisque carebunt, 435 

Votaque servati solvent in litore nautae 
Glauco et Panopeae et Inoo Melicertae. 
Sol quoque et exoriens, et quum se condet in undas, 
Signa dabit ; solem certissima signa sequuntur, 
Et quae mane refert, et quae surgentibus astris. 440 

Ille ubi nascentem maculis variaverit ortum 
Conditus in nubem, medioque refugerit orbe, 
Suspecti tibi sint imbres ; namque urguet ab alto 
Arboribusque satisque Notus pecorique sinister. 
Aut ubi sub lucem densa inter nubila sese 445 

Diversi rumpent radii, aut ubi pallida surget 
Tithoni croceum linquens Aurora cubile, 
Heu, male turn mites defendet pampinus uvas : 
Tam multa in tectis crepitans salit horrida grando. 
Hoc etiam, emenso quum jam decedit Olympo, 45 o 

Profuerit meminisse magis ; nam saepe videmus 
Ipsius in vultu varios errare colores ; 
Caeruleus pluviam denuntiat, igneus Euros ; 
Sin maculae incipient rutilo immiscerier igni, 
Omnia turn pariter vento nimbisque videbis 455 

Fervere. Non ilia quisquam me nocte per altum 
Ire, neque a terra moneat convellere funem. 



96 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

At si, quum referetque diem condetque relatum, 

Lucidus orbis erit, frustra terrebere nimbis, 

Et claro silvas cernes Aquilone moveri. 4 &o 

Denique, quid vesper serus vehat, unde serenas 

Ventus agat nubes, quid cogitet humidus Auster, 

Sol tibi signa dabit. Solem quis dicere falsum 

Audeat ? Ille etiam caecos instare tumultus 

Saepe monet, fraudemque et operta tumescere bella 465 

Ille etiam exstincto miseratus Caesare Romam, 

Quum caput obscura nitidum ferrugine texit, 

Impiaque aeternam timuerunt saecula noctem. 

Tempore quamquam illo tellus quoque et aequora ponti, 

Obscenaeque canes, importunaeque volucres 470 

Signa dabant. Quoties Cyclopum effervere in agros 

Vidimus undantem ruptis fornacibus Aetnam, 

Flammarumque globos liquefactaque volvere saxa ! 

Armorum sonitum toto Germania coelo 

Audiit ; insolitis tremuerunt motibus Alpes. 475 

Vox quoque per lucos vulgo exaudita silentes, 

Ingens, et simulacra modis pallentia miris 

Visa sub obscurum noctis • pecudesque locutae, 

Infandum ! sistunt amnes, terraeque dehiscunt, 

Et maestum illacrimat templis ebur, aeraque sudant. 4S0 

Proluit insano contorquens vertice silvas 

Fluviorum rex Eridanus, camposque per omnes 

Cum stabulis armenta tulit. Nee tempore eodem 

Tristibus aut extis fibrae apparere minaces, 

Aut puteis manare cruor cessavit, et altae 485 

Per noctem resonare lupis ululantibus urbes. 

Non alias coelo ceciderunt plura sereno 

Fulgura nee diri toties arsere cometae. 

Ergo inter sese paribus concurrere telis 

Romanas acies iterum videre Philippi ; 49 o 

Nee fuit indignum superis, bis sanguine nostro 

Emathiam et latos Haemi pinguescere campos. 

Scilicet et tempus veniet, quum finibus illis 



GEORGICON LIB. II. 97 

Agricola, incurvo terram molitus aratro, 

Exesa inveniet scabra robigine pila, 495 

Aut gravibus rastris galeas pulsabit inanes, 

Grandiaque effossis mirabitur ossa sepulchris. 

Di patrii, Indigetes, et Romule Vestaque mater, 

Quae Tuscum Tiberim et Romana Palatia servas, 

Hunc saltern everso juvenem succurrere saeclo 500 

Ne prohibete ! Satis jam pridem sanguine nostro 

Laomedonteae luimus perjuria Trojae ; 

Jam pridem nobis coeli te regia, Caesar, 

Invidet, atque hominum queritur curare triumphos ; 

Quippe ubi fas versum atque nefas : tot bella per orbem, 505 

Tam multae scelerum facies ; non ullus aratro 

Dignus honos ; squalent abductis arva colonis, 

Et curvae rigidum falces conflantur in ensem. 

Hinc movet Euphrates, illinc Germania bellum ; 

Vicinae ruptis inter se legibus urbes 510 

Arma ferunt ; saevit toto Mars impius orbe ; 

Ut quum carceribus sese efrudere quadrigae, 

Addunt in spatia, et frustra retinacula tendens 

Fertur equis auriga, neque audit currus habenas. 



LIBER II. 

Hactenus arvorum cultus et sidera coeli, 
Nunc te, Bacche, canam, nee non silvestria tecum 
Virgulta et prolem tarde crescentis olivae. 
Hue, pater o Lenaee ; tuis hie omnia plena 
Muneribus, tibi pampineo gravidus autumno 
Floret ager, spumat plenis vindemia labris ; 
Hue, pater o Lenaee, veni, nudataque musto 
Tingue novo mecum dereptis crura cothurnis. 

Principio arboribus varia est natura creandis. 
Namque aliae, nullis hominum cogentibus, ipsae 
7 



95 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Sponte sua veniunt camposque et flumina late 

Curva tenent, ut molle siler, lentaeque genestae, 

Populus et glauca canentia fronde salicta ; 

Pars autem posito surgunt de semine, ut altae 

Castaneae, nemorumque Jovi quae maxima frondet 15 

Aesculus, atque habitae Graiis oracula quercus. 

Pullulat ab radice aliis densissima silva, 

Ut cerasis ulmisque ; etiam Parnasia laurus 

Parva sub ingenti matris se subjicit umbra. 

Hos natura modos primum dedit ; his genus omne 20 

Silvarum fruticumque viret nemorumque sacrorum. 

Sunt alii, quos ipse via sibi reperit usus. 
Hie plantas tenero abscindens de corpore matrum 
Deposuit sulcis ; hie stirpes obruit arvo, 
Quadrifidasque sudes, et acuto robore vallos ; 25 

Silvarumque aliae pressos propaginis arcus 
Exspectant et viva sua plantaria terra ; 
Nil radicis egent aliae, summumque putator 
Haud dubitat terrae referens mandare cacumen ; 
Quin et caudicibus sectis — mirabile dictu — 30 

Truditur e sicco radix oleagina ligno ; 
Et saepe alterius ramos impune videmus 
Vertere in alterius, mutatamque insita mala 
Ferre pirum, et prunis lapidosa rubescere corna. 

Quare agite o, proprios generatim discite cultus, 35 

Agricolae, fructusque feros mollite colendo, 
Neu segnes jaceant terrae. Juvat Ismara Baccho 
Conserere, atque olea magnum vestire Taburnum. 
Tuque ades, inceptumque una decurre laborem, 
O decus, o famae merito pars maxima nostrae, 40 

Maecenas, pelagoque volans da vela patenti. 
Non ego cuncta meis amplecti versibus opto, 
Non, mihi si linguae centum sint, oraque centum, 
Ferrea vox ; ades, et primi lege litoris oram ; 
In manibus terrae ; non hie te carmine ficto 45 

Atque per ambages et longa exorsa tenebo. 



GEORGICON LIB. II. 99 

Sponte sua quae se tollunt in luminis oras, 
Infecunda quidem, sed laeta et fortia surgunt ; 
Quippe solo natura subest. Tamen haec quoque, si quis 
Inserat, aut scrobibus mandet mutata subactis, 50 

Exuerint silvestrem animum, cultuque frequenti 
In quascumque voces artes haud tarda sequentur. 
Nee non et sterilis, quae stirpibus exit ab imis, 
Hoc faciet, vacuos si sit digesta per agros ; 
Nunc altae frondes et rami matris opacant, 55 

Crescentique adimunt fetus, uruntque ferentem. 
Jam, quae seminibus jactis se sustulit arbos, 
Tarda venit, seris factura nepotibus umbram, 
Pomaque degenerant sucos oblita priores, 
Et turpes avibus praedam fert uva racemos. 60 

Scilicet omnibus est labor impendendus, et omnes 
Cogendae in sulcum, ac multa mercede domandae. 
Sed truncis oleae melius, propagine vites 
Respondent, solido Paphiae de robore myrtus ; 
Plantis et durae coryli nascuntur, et ingens 65 

Fraxinus, Herculeaeque arbos umbrosa coronae, 
Chaoniique patris glandes ; etiam ardua palma 
Nascitur, et casus abies visura marinos. 
Inseritur vero et nucis arbutus horrida fetu, 
Et steriles platani malos gessere valentes ; 70 

Castaneae fagus, omusque incanuit albo 
Flore piri, glandemque sues fregere sub ulmis. 

Nee modus' inserere atque oculos imponere simplex. 
Nam, qua se medio trudunt de cortice gemmae 
Et tenues rumpunt tunicas, angustus in ipso 75 

Fit nudo sinus : hue aliena ex arbore germen 
Includunt, udoque docent inolescere libro. 
Aut rursum enodes trunci resecantur, et alte 
Finditur in solidum cuneis via, deinde feraces 
Plantae immittuntur : nee longum tempus, et ingens 80 
Exiit ad coelum ramis felicibus arbos, 
Miraturque novas frondes et non sua poma. 



100 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Praeterea genus haud unum, nee fortibus ulmis, 
Nee salici lotoque, neque Idaeis cyparissis ; 
Nee pingues imam in faciem nascuntur olivae, 85 

Orchades, et radii, et amara pausia bacca, 
Pomaque et Alcinoi silvae ; nee surculus idem 
Crustumiis Syriisque piris gravibusque volemis. 
Non eadem arboribus pendet vindemia nostris, 
Quam Methymnaeo carpit de palmite Lesbos ; 90 

Sunt Thasiae vites, sunt et Mareotides albae, 
Pinguibus hae terris habiles, levioribus illae ; 
Et passo Psithia utilior, tenuisque Lageos, 
Tentatura pedes olim vincturaque linguam ; 
Purpureae, preciaeque ; et quo te carmine dicam, 95 

Rhaetica? nee cellis ideo contende Falernis. 
Sunt et Aminaeae vites, firmissima vina, 
Tmolius adsurgit quibus et rex ipse Phanaeus ; 
Argitisque minor, cui non certaverit ulla 
Aut tantum fluere aut totidem durare per annos. 100 

Non ego te, Dis et mensis accepta secundis, 
Transierim, Rhodia, et tumidis, Bumaste, racemis. 
Sed neque, quam multae species, nee, nomina quae sint, 
Est numerus ; neque enim numero comprendere refert ; 
Quem qui scire velit, Libyci velit aequoris idem 105 

Discere quam multae Zephyro turbentur arenae, 
Aut, ubi navigiis violentior incidit Eurus, 
Nosse, quot Ionii veniant ad litora fluctus. 

Nee vero terrae ferre omnes omnia possunt. 
Fluminibus salices crassisque paludibus alni no 

Nascuntur, steriles saxosis montibus orni ; 
Litora myrtetis laetissima ; denique apertos 
Bacchus amat colles, aquilonem et frigora taxi. 
Adspice et extremis domitum cultoribus orbem, 
Eoasque domos Arabum pictosque Gelonos. 115 

Divisae arboribus patriae : sola India nigrum 
Fert ebenum, solis est turea virga Sabaeis. 
Quid tibi odorato referam sudantia ligno 



GEORGICON LIB. II. IOI 

Balsamaque et baccas semper frondentis acanthi ? 

Quid nemora Aethiopum, molli canentia lana ? 120 

Velleraque ut foliis depectant tenuia Seres ? 

Aut quos Oceano propior gerit India lucos, 

Extremi sinus orbis, ubi aera vincere summum 

Arboris haud ullae jactu potuere sagittae ? 

Et gens ilia quidem sumptis non tarda pharetris. 125 

Media fert tristes sucos tardumque saporem 

Felicis mali, quo non praesentius ullum, 

Pocula si quando saevae infecere novercae 

Miscueruntque herbas et non innoxia verba, 

Auxilium venit, ac membris agit atra venena. 130 

Ipsa ingens arbos faciemque simillima lauro, 

Et, si non alium late jactaret odorem, 

Laurus erat ; folia haud ullis labentia ventis ; 

Flos ad prima tenax ; animas et olentia Medi 

Ora fovent illo et senibus medicantur anhelis. 13s 

Sed neque Medorum silvae, ditissima terra, 
Nee pulcher Ganges atque auro turbidus Hermus 
Laudibus Italiae certent, non Bactra, neque Indi, 
Totaque turiferis Panchaia pinguis arenis. 
Haec loca non tauri spirantes naribus ignem 140 

Invertere satis immanis dentibus hydri, 
Nee galeis densisque virum seges horruit hastis ; 
Sed gravidae fruges et Bacchi Massicus humor 
Implevere ; tenent oleae armentaque laeta. 
Hinc bellator equus campo sese arduus infert ; 145 

Hinc albi, Clitumne, greges et maxima taurus 
Victima, saepe tuo perfusi flumine sacro, 
Romanos ad templa deum duxere triumphos. 
Hie ver adsiduum atque alienis mensibus aestas ; 
Bis gravidae pecudes, bis pomis utilis arbos. 150 

At rabid ae tigres absunt et saeva leonum 
Semina, nee miseros fallunt aconita legentes, 
Nee rapit immensos orbes per humum, neque tanto 
Squameus in spiram tractu se colligit anguis. 



102 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Adde tot egregias urbes operumque laborem, 155 

Tot congesta manu praeruptis oppida saxis, 

Fluminaque antiquos subterlabentia muros. 

An mare, quod supra, memorem, quodque alluit infra ? 

Anne lacus tantos,,te, Lari maxime, teque, 

Fluctibus et fremitu adsurgens Benace marino ? 160 

An memorem portus Lucrinoque addita claustra 

Atque indignatum magnis stridoribus aequor, 

Julia qua ponto longe sonat unda refuso 

Tyrrhenusque fretis immittitur aestus Avernis ? 

Haec eadem argenti rivos aerisque metalla 165 

Ostendit venis, atque auro plurima fluxit. 

Haec genus acre virum, Marsos, pubemque Sabellam, 

Adsuetumque malo Ligurem, Volscosque verutos 

Extulit, haec Decios, Marios, magnosque Camillos, 

Scipiadas duros bello, et te, maxime Caesar, 170 

Qui nunc extremis Asiae jam victor in oris 

Imbellem avertis Romanis arcibus Indum. 

Salve, magna parens frugum, Saturnia tellus, 

Magna virum ; tibi res antiquae laudis et artis 

Ingredior, sanctos ausus recludere fontis, 175 

Ascraeumque eano Romana per oppida carmen. 

Nunc locus arvorum ingeniis, quae robora cuique, 
Quis color, et quae sit rebus natura ferendis. 
Difficiles primum terrae collesque maligni, 
Tenuis ubi argilla et dumosis calculus arvis, 180 

Palladia gaudent silva vivacis olivae. 
Indicio est tractu surgens oleaster eodem 
Plurimus et strati baccis silvestribus agri. 
At quae pinguis humus dulcique uligine laeta, 
Quique frequens herbis et fertilis ubere campus — 185 

Qualem saepe cava montis convalle solemus 
Despicere ; hue summis liquuntur rupibus- amnes, 
Felicemque trahunt limum — quique editus austro, 
Et nlicem curvis invisam pascit aratris : 
Hie tibi praevalidas olim multoque fluentes 190 



GEORGICON LIB. II. • 103 

Sufficiet Baccho vites, hie fertilis uvae, 
Hie laticis, qualem pateris libamus et auro, 
Inflavit quum pinguis ebur Tyrrhenus ad aras 
Lancibus et pandis fumantia reddimus exta. 
Sin armenta magis studium vitulosque tueri, 195 

Aut fetus ovium, aut urentes culta capellas, 
Saltus et saturi petito longinqua Tarenti, 
Et qualem infelix amisit Mantua campum, 
Pascentem niveos herboso flumine eyenos : 
Non liquidi gregibus fontes, non gramina deerunt, 200 

Et, quantum longis carpent armenta diebus, 
Exigua tantum gelidus ros nocte reponet. 
Nigra fere et presso pinguis sub vomere terra, 
Et cui putre solum, — nam que hoc imitamur arando — 
Optima frumentis ; non ullo ex aequore cernes 205 

Plura domum tardis decedere plaustra juvencis ; 
Aut unde iratus silvam devexit arator 
Et nemora evertit multos ignava per annos, 
Antiquasque domos avium cum stirpibus imis 
Emit ; illae altum nidis petiere relictis ; 210 

At rudis enituit impulso vomere campus. 
Nam jejuna quidem clivosi glarea ruris 
Vix humiles apibus casias roremque ministrat ; 
Et tofus scaber, et nigris exesa chelydris 
Creta negant alios aeque serpentibus agros 215 

Dulcem ferre cibum et curvas praebere latebras. 
Quae tenuem exhalat nebulam fumosque volucres, 
Et bibit humorem, et quum vult, ex se ipsa remittit, 
Quaque suo semper viridis se gramme vestit, 
Nee scabie et salsa laedit robigine ferrum, 220 

Ilia tibi laetis intexet vitibus ulmos, 
Ilia ferax oleae est, illam experiere colendo 
Et facilem pecori et patientem vomeris unci. 
Talem dives arat Capua et vicina Vesevo 
Ora jugo et vacuis Clanius non aequus Acerris. 225 

Nunc, quo quamque modo possis cognoscere, dicam. 



104 ' P- VIRGILII MARONIS 

Rara sit an supra morem si densa requires, 

Altera frumentis quoniam favet, altera Baccho, 

Densa magis Cereri, rarissima quaeque Lyaeo ; 

Ante locum capies oculis, alteque jubebis 230 

In solido puteum demitti, omnemque repones 

Rursus humum, et pedibus summas aequabis arenas. 

Si deerunt, rarum, pecorique et vitibus almis 

Aptius uber erit ; sin in sua posse negabunt 

Ire loca et scrobibus superabit terra repletis, 235 

Spissus ager ; glaebas cunctantes crassaque terga 

Exspecta, et validis terram proscinde juvencis. 

Salsa autem tellus et quae perhibetur amara — 

Frugibus infelix ea, nee mansuescit arando, 

Nee Baccho genus, aut pomis sua nomina servat — 240 

Tale dabit specimen : tu spisso vimine qualos, 

Colaque prelorum fumosis deripe tectis ; 

Hue ager ille malus dulcesque a fontibus undae 

Ad plenum calcentur ; aqua eluctabitur omnis 

Scilicet, et grandes ibunt per vimina guttae ; 245 

At sapor indicium faciet manifestus, et ora 

Tristia tentantum sensu torquebit amaro. 

Pinguis item quae sit tellus, hoc denique pacto 

Discimus : haud umquam manibus j aetata fatiscit, 

Sed picis in morem ad digitos lentescit habendo. 250 

Humida majores herbas alit, ipsaque justo 

Laetior. Ah nimium ne sit mihi fertilis ilia, 

Neu se praevalidam primis ostendat aristis ! 

Quae gravis est, ipso tacitam se pondere prodit, 

Quaeque levis. Promptum est oculis praediscere nigram, 255 

Et quis cui color. At sceleratum exquirere frigus 

Difficile est : piceae tantum taxique nocentes 

Interdum aut hederae pandunt vestigia nigrae. 

His animadversis, terram multo ante memento 
Excoquere et magnos scrobibus concidere montes, 260 

Ante supinatas aquiloni ostendere glaebas, 
Quam laetum infodias vitis genus. Optima putri 



GEORGICON LIB. II. 105 

Arva solo : id venti curant gelidaeque pruinae 

Et labefacta movens robustus jugera fossor. 

At, si quos haud ulla viros vigilantia fugit, 265 

Ante locum similem exquirunt, ubi prima paretur 

Arboribus seges, et quo mox digesta feratur, 

Mutatam ignorent subito ne semina matrem. 

Quin etiam coeli regionem in cortice signant, 

Ut, quo quaeque modo steterit, qua parte calores 270 

Austrinos tulerit, quae terga obverterit axi, 

Restituant : adeo in teneris consuescere multum est. 

Collibus an piano melius sit ponere vitem, 

Quaere prius. Si pinguis agros metabere campi, 

Densa sere ; in denso non segnior ubere Bacchus ; 275 

Sin tumulis acclive solum collesque supinos, 

Indulge ordinibus, nee secius omnis in unguem 

Arboribus positis secto via limite quadret. 

Ut saepe ingenti bello quum longa cohortes 

Explicuit legio, et campo stetit agmen aperto, 280 

Directaeque acies, ac late fluctuat omnis 

Aere renidenti tellus, necdum horrida miscent 

Proelia, sed dubius mediis Mars errat in armis ; 

Omnia sint paribus numeris dimensa viarum ; 

Non animum modo uti pascat prospectus inanem, 285 

Sed quia non aliter vires dabit omnibus aequas 

Terra, neque in vacuum poterunt se extendere rami. 

Forsitan et scrobibus quae sint fastigia quaeras. 
Ausim vel tenui vitem committere sulco. 
Altior ac penitus terrae defigitur arbos, 290 

Aesculus in primis, quae, quantum vertice ad auras 
Aetherias, tantum radice in Tartara tendit. 
Ergo non hiemes illam, non flabra, neque imbres 
Convellunt ; inmota manet, multosque nepotes, 
Multa virum volvens durando saecula vincit ; 295 

Turn fortes late ramos et brachia tendens 
Hue illuc, media ipsa ingentem sustinet umbram. 

Neve tibi ad solem vergant vineta cadentem ; 



106 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Neve inter vites corylum sere ; neve flagella 

Summa pete, aut summa defringe ex arbore plantas ; 30° 

Tantus amor terrae ; neu ferro laede retunso 

Semina ; neve oleae silvestris insere truncos : 

Nam saepe incautis pastoribus excidit ignis, 

Qui, furtim pingui primum sub cortice tectus, 

Robora comprendit, frondesque elapsus in altas 305 

Ingentem coelo sonitum dedit ; inde secutus 

Per ramos victor perque alta cacumina regnat, 

Et totum involvit flammis nemus, et ruit atram 

Ad coelum picea crassus caligine nubem, 

Praesertim si tempestas a vertice silvis 310 

Incubuit, glomeratque ferens incendia ventus. 

Hoc ubi, non a stirpe valent caesaeque reverti 

Possunt atque ima similes revirescere terra ; 

Infelix superat foliis oleaster amaris. 

Nee tibi tarn prudens quisquam persuadeat auctor 315 
Tellurem Borea rigidam spirante movere. 
Rura gelu tunc claudit hiems, nee semine jacto 
Concretam patitur radicem affigere terrae. 
Optima vinetis satio, quum vere rubenti 
Candida venit avis longis invisa colubris, 320 

Prima vel autumni sub frigora, quum rapidus Sol 
Nondum hiemem contingit equis, jam praeterit aestas. 
Ver adeo frondi nemorum, ver utile silvis, 
Vere tument terrae et genitalia semina poscunt 
Turn pater omnipotens fecundis imbribus Aether 325 

Conjugis in gremium laetae descendit, et omnes 
Magnus alit, magno commixtus corpore, fetus. 
Avia turn resonant avibus virgulta canoris, 
Et Venerem certis repetunt armenta diebus ; 
Parturit almus ager, Zephyrique tepentibus auris 330 

Laxant arva sinus ; superat tener omnibus humor ; 
Inque novos soles audent se gramina tuto 
Credere ; nee metuit surgentis pampinus austros 
Aut actum coelo magnis aquilonibus imbrem, 



GEORGICON LIB. II. 107 

Sed trudit gemmas et frondes explicat omnes. 335 

Non alios prima crescentis origine mundi 

Illuxisse dies aliumve habuisse tenorem 

Crediderim : ver illud erat, ver magnus agebat 

Orbis, et hibernis parcebant flatibus Euri : 

Quum primae lucem pecudes hausere, virumque 340 

Ferrea progenies duris caput extulit arvis, 

Immissaeque ferae silvis et sidera coelo. 

Nee res hunc tenerae possent perferre laborem, 

Si non tanta quies iret frigusque caloremque 

Inter, et exciperet coeli indulgentia terras. 345 

Quod superest, quaecumque premes virgulta per agros, 
Sparge fimo pingui, et multa memor occule terra, 
Aut lapidem bibulum, aut squalentes infode conchas, 
Inter enim labentur aquae, tenuisque subibit 
Halitus, atque animos tollent sata ; jam que reperti, 350 
Qui saxo super atque ingentis pondere testae 
Urguerent ; hoc effusos munimen ad imbres, 
Hoc ubi hiulca siti findit Canis aestifer arva. 

Seminibus positis, superest diducere terram 
Saepius ad capita, et duros jactare bidentes, 355 

Aut presso exercere solum sub vomere, et ipsa 
Flectere luctantes inter vineta juvencos ) 
Turn leves calamos et rasae hastilia virgae 
Fraxineasque aptare sudes, furcasque valentes, 
Viribus eniti quarum et contemnere ventos 360 

Adsuescant, summasque sequi tabulata per ulmos. 

Ac dum prima novis adolescit frondibus aetas, 
Parcendum teneris, et, dum se laetus ad auras 
Palmes agit laxis per purum immissus habenis, 
Ipsa acie nondum falcis tentanda, sed uncis 36s 

Carpendae manibus frondes, interque legendae : . 
Inde ubi jam validis amplexae stirpibus ulmos 
Exierint, tunc stringe comas, tunc brachia tonde ; 
Ante reformidant ferrum ; turn denique dura 
Exerce imperia, et ramos compesce fluentes. 370 



108 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Texendae saepes etiam et pecus omne tenendum, 
Praecipue dum frons tenera imprudensque laborum ; 
Cui super indignas hiemes solemque potentem 
Silvestres uri adsidue capreaeque sequaces 
Illudunt, pascuntur oves avidaeque juvencae. 375 

Frigora nee tantum cana concreta pruina, 
Aut gravis incumbens scopulis arentibus aestas, 
Quantum illi nocuere greges, durique venenum 
Dentis et admorso signata in stirpe cicatrix. 
Non aliam ob culpam Baccho caper omnibus aris 380 

Caeditur et veteres ineunt proscenia ludi, 
Praemiaque ingeniis pagos et compita circum 
Thesidae posuere, atque inter pocula laeti 
Mollibus in pratis unctos saluere per utres. 
Nee non Ausonii, Troja gens missa, coloni 385 

Versibus incomptis ludunt risuque soluto, 
Oraque corticibus sumunt horrenda cavatis, 
Et te, Bacche, vocant per carmina laeta, tibique 
Oscilla ex alta suspendunt mollia pinu. 
Hinc omnis largo pubescit vinea fetu, 390 

Complentur vallesque cavae saltusque profundi, 
Et quocumque deus circum caput egit honestum. 
Ergo rite suum Baccho dicemus honorem 
Carminibus patriis lancesque et liba feremus, 
Et ductus cornu stabit sacer hircus ad aram, 395 

Pinguiaque in veribus torrebimus exta colurnis. 

Est etiam ille labor curandis vitibus alter, 
Cui numquam exhausti satis est : namque omne quot annis 
Terque quaterque solum scindendum, glaebaque versis 
Aeternum frangenda bidentibus ; omne levandum 4°o 

Fronde nemus. Redit agricolis labor actus in orbem, 
Atque in se sua per vestigia volvitur annus. 
Ac jam olim seras posuit quum vinea frondes 
Frigidus et silvis aquilo decussit honorem, 
Jam turn acer curas venientem extendit in annum 405 

Rusticus, et curvo Saturni dente relictam 



GEORGICON LIB. II. I09 

Persequitur vitem attondens fingitque putando. 

Primus humum fodito, primus devecta cremato 

Sarmenta, et vallos primus sub tecta referto ; 

Postremus metito. Bis vitibus ingruit umbra ; 410 

Bis segetem densis obducunt sentibus herbae ; 

Durus uterque labor : laudato ingentia rura, 

Exiguum colito. Nee non etiam aspera rusci 

Vimina per silvam, et ripis fluvialis arundo 

Caeditur, incultique exercet cura salicti. 415 

Jam vinctae vites, jam falcem arbusta reponunt, 

Jam canit effectos extremus vinitor antes : 

Sollicitanda tamen tellus, pulvisque movendus, 

Et jam maturis metuendus Juppiter uvis. 

Contra non ulla est oleis cultura ; neque illae 420 

Procurvam exspectant falcem rastrosque tenaces, 
Quum semel haeserunt arvis aurasque tulerunt ; 
Ipsa satis tellus, quum dente recluditur unco, 
Sufficit humorem et gravidas cum vomere fruges ; 
Hoc pinguem et placitam Paci nutritor olivam. 425 

Poma quoque, ut primum truncos sensere valentes 
Et vires habuere suas, ad sidera raptim 
Vi propria nituntur opisque haud indiga nostrae. 
Nee minus interea fetu nemus omne gravescit, 
Sanguineisque inculta rubent aviaria baccis : 430 

Tondentur cytisi, taedas silva alta ministrat, 
Pascunturque ignes nocturni et lumina fundunt : 
Et dubitant homines serere atque impendere curam ? 
Quid majora sequar? salices humilesque genestae, 
Aut illae pecori frondem aut pastoribus umbras 435 

Sufficiunt, saepemque satis et pabula melli. 
Et juvat undantem buxo spectare Cytorum 
Naryciaeque picis lucos, juvat arva videre 
Non rastris, hominum non ulli obnoxia curae. 
Ipsae Caucasio steriles in vertice silvae, 440 

Quas animosi Euri adsidue franguntque feruntque, 
Dant alios aliae fetus, dant utile lignum 



IIO P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Navigiis pinos, domibus cedrumque cupressosque ; 

Hinc radios trivere rotis, hinc tympana plaustris 

Agricolae, et pandas ratibus posuere carinas ; 445 

Viminibus salices fecundae, frondibus ulmi, 

At myrtus validis hastilibus et bona bello 

Cornus ; Ituraeos taxi torquentur in arcus ; 

Nee tiliae leves aut torno rasile buxum 

Non formam accipiunt ferroque cavantur acuto ; 45° 

Nee non et torrentem undam levis innatat alnus, 

Missa Pado ; nee non et apes examina condunt 

Corticibusque cavis vitiosaeque ilicis alveo. 

Quid memorandum aeque Baccheia dona tulerunt? 

Bacchus et ad culpam caussas dedit : ille furentes 455 

Centauros leto domuit, Rhoetumque Pholumque 

Et magno Hylaeum Lapithis cratere minantem. 

O fortunatos nimium, sua si bona norint, 
Agricolas, quibus ipsa, procul discordibus armis, 
Fundit humo facilem victum justissima tellus ! 460 

Si non ingentem foribus domus alta superbis 
Mane salutantum totis vomit aedibus undam, 
Nee varios inhiant pulchra testudine postes, 
Illusasque auro vestes, Ephyreiaque aera, 
Alba neque Assyrio fucatur lana veneno, 465 

Nee casia liquidi corrumpitur usus olivi : 
At secura quies et nescia fallere vita, 
Dives opum variarum, at latis otia fundis, 
Speluncae, vivique lacus, at frigida Tempe, 
Mugitusque boum, mollesque sub arbore somni 470 

Non absunt ; illic saltus ac lustra ferarum, 
Et patiens operum exiguoque adsueta juventus, 
Sacra deum, sanctique patres ; extrema per illos 
Justitia excedens terris vestigia fecit. 

Me vero primum dulces ante omnia Musae, 475 

Quarum sacra fero ingenti percussus amore, 
Accipiant, coelique vias et sidera monstrent, 
Defectus solis varios, lunaeque labores, 



GEORGICON LIB. II. Ill 

Unde tremor terris, qua vi maria alta tumescant 

Objicibus ruptis rursusque in se ipsa residant, 480 

Quid tan turn Oceano properent se tinguere soles 

Hiberni, vel quae tardis mora noctibus obstet. 

Sin, has ne possim naturae accedere partes, 

Frigidus obstiterit circum praecordia sanguis, 

Rura mihi et rigui placeant in vallibus amnes ; 485 

Flumina amem silvasque inglorius. O, ubi campi 

Spercheusque, et virginibus bacchata Lacaenis 

Taygeta ! o, qui me gelidis convallibus Haemi 

Sistat, et ingenti ramorum protegat umbra ! 

Felix, qui potuit rerum cognoscere caussas, 490 

Atque metus omnes et inexorabile fatum 

Subjecit pedibus strepitumque Acherontis avari ! 

Fortunatus et ille, deos qui novit agrestes, 

Panaque Silvanumque senem Nymphasque sorores ! 

Ilium non populi fasces, non purpura regum 495 

Flexit et infidos agitans discordia fratres, 

Aut conjurato descendens Dacus ab Histro, 

Non res Romanae perituraque regna ; neque ille 

Aut doluit miserans inopem, aut invidit habenti. 

Quos rami fructus, quos ipsa volentia rura 500 

Sponte tulere sua, carpsit, nee ferrea jura 

Insanumque forum aut populi tabularia vidit. 

Sollicitant alii remis freta caeca, ruuntque 

In ferrum, penetrant aulas et limina regum ; 

Hie petit exscidiis urbem miserosque Penates, 505 

Ut gemma bibat et Sarrano dormiat ostro ; 

Condit opes alius, defossoque incubat auro ; 

Hie stupet attonitus Rostris ; hunc plausus hiantem 

Per cuneos geminatus enim plebisque patrumque 

Corripuit ; gaudent perfusi sanguine fratrum, 510 

Exsilioque domos et dulcia limina mutant, 

Atque alio patriam quaerunt sub sole jacentem. 

Agricola incurvo terram dimovit aratro : 

Hinc anni labor, hinc patriam parvosque Penates 



112 P. VIRGILII MARONIS GEORGICON LIB. II. 

Sustinet, hinc armenta bourn meritosque juvencos. 5*5 

Nee requies, quin aut pomis exuberet annus, 

Aut fetu pecorum, aut Cerealis mergite culmi, 

Proventuque oneret sulcos atque horrea vincat. 

Venit hiems : teritur Sicyonia bacca trapetis, 

Glande sues laeti redeunt, dant arbuta silvae ; 520 

Et varios ponit fetus autumnus, et alte 

Mitis in apricis coquitur vindemia saxis. 

Interea dulces pendent circum oscula nati, 

Casta pudicitiam servat domus, ubera vaccae 

Lactea demittunt, pinguesque in gramme laeto 525 

Inter se adversis luctantur cornibus haedi. 

Ipse dies agitat festos, fususque per herbam, 

Ignis ubi in medio et socii cratera coronant, 

Te, libans, Lenaee, vocat, pecorisque magistris 

Velocis jaculi certamina ponit in ulmo, 530 

Corporaque agresti nudant praedura palaestrae. 

Hanc olim veteres vitam coluere Sabini, 

Hanc Remus et frater, sic fortis Etruria crevit 

Scilicet, et rerum facta est pulcherrima Roma, 

Septemque una sibi muro circumdedit arces. 535 

Ante etiam sceptrum Dictaei regis, et ante 

Impia quam caesis gens est epulata juvencis, 

Aureus hanc vitam in terris Saturnus agebat : 

Necdum etiam audierant inflari classica, necdum 

Impositos duris crepitare incudibus enses. S4 o 

Sed nos immensum spatiis confecimus aequor, 
Et jam tempus equum fumantia solvere colla. 



P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

AENEIS. 

LIBER I. 

Arma virumque cano, Trojae qui primus ab oris 
Italiam, fato profugus, Lavinaque venit 
Litora, multum ille et terris jactatus et alto 
Vi superum, saevae memorem Junonis ob iram, 
Multa quoque et bello passus, dum conderet urbem, 
Inferretque deos Latio, genus unde Latinum 
Albanique patres atque altae moenia Romae. 

Musa, mihi caussas memora, quo numine laeso, 
Quidve dolens, regina deum tot volvere casus 
Insignem pietate virum, tot adire labores 
Impulerit. Tantaene animis coelestibus irae ? 

Urbs antiqua fuit, Tyrii tenuere coloni, 
Karthago, Italiam contra Tiberinaque longe 
Ostia, dives opum studiisque asperrima belli ; 
Quam Juno fertur terris magis omnibus unam 
Posthabita coluisse Samo ; hie illius arma, 
Hie currus fuit ; hoc regnum dea gentibus esse, 
Si qua fata sin ant, jam turn tenditque fovetque. 
Progeniem sed enim Trojano a sanguine duci 
Audierat, Tyrias olim quae verteret arces ; 
Hinc populum late regem belloque superbum 
Venturum exscidio Libyae : sic volvere Parcas. 
Id metuens veterisque memor Saturnia belli, 
Prima quod ad Trojam pro caris gesserat Argis — 



114 p - VIRGILII MARONIS 

Necdum etiam caussae irarum saevique dolores 25 

Exciderant animo : manet,alta mente repostum 

Judicium Paridis spretaeque injuria formae, 

Et genus invisum, et rapti Ganymedis honores ; 

His accensa super jactatos aequore toto 

Troas reliquias Danaum atque immitis Achilli, 30 

Arcebat longe Latio, multosque per annos 

Errabant, acti fatis, maria omnia circum. 

Tantae molis erat Romanam condere gentem. 

Vix e conspectu Siculae telluris in altum 
Vela dabant laeti, et spumas salis aere ruebant, 35 

Cum Juno, aeternum servans sub pectore vulnus, 
Haec secum : Mene incepto desistere victam, 
Nee posse Italia Teucrorum avertere regem ? 
Quippe vetor fatis. Pallasne exurere classem 
Argivum atque ipsos potuit submergere ponto, 40 

Unius ob noxam et furias Ajacis Oilei? 
Ipsa, Jovis rapidum jaculata e nubibus ignem, 
Disjecitque rates evertitque aequora ventis, 
Ilium exspirantem transfixo pectore flammas 
Turbine corripuit scopuloque infixit acuto ; 45 

Ast ego, quae divum incedo regina, Jovisque 
Et soror et conjux, una cum gente tot annos 
Bella gero. Et quisquam numen Junonis adorat 
Praeterea, aut supplex aris imponit honorem ? 

Talia flammato secum dea corde volutans 5° 

Nimborum in patriam, loca feta furentibus austris, 
Aeoliam venit. Hie vasto rex Aeolus antro 
Luctantes ventos tempestatesque sonoras 
Imperio premit ac vinclis et carcere frenat. 
Illi indignantes magno cum murmure montis 55 

Circum claustra fremunt ; celsa sedet Aeolus arce 
Sceptra tenens, mollitque animos et temperat iras ; 
Ni faciat, maria ac terras coelumque profundum 
Quippe ferant rapidi secum verrantque per auras. 
Sed pater omnipotens speluncis abdidit atris, 60 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. 115 

Hoc metuens, molemque et montes insuper altos 
Imposuit, regemque dedit, qui foedere certo 
Et premere et laxas sciret dare jussus habenas. 
Ad quem turn Juno supplex his vocibus usa est : 

Aeole, namque tibi divum pater atque hominum rex 6 5 
Et mulcere dedit fluctus et tollere vento, 
Gens inimica mihi Tyrrhenum navigat aequor, 
Ilium in Italiam portans victosque Penates : 
Incute vim ventis submersasque obrue puppes, 
Aut age diversos et disjice corpora ponto. » 70 

Sunt mihi bis septem praestanti corpore Nymphae, 
Quarum quae forma pulcherrima Deiopea, 
Connubio jungam stabili propriamque dicabo, 
Omnes ut tecum mentis pro talibus annos 
Exigat et pulchra faciat te prole parentem. . 75 

Aeolus haec contra : Tuus, o regina, quid optes, 
Explorare labor; mihi jussa capessere fas est. 
Tu mihi, quodcumque hoc regni, tu sceptra Jovemque 
Concilias, tu das epulis accumbere divum, 
Nimborumque facis tempestatumque potentem. 80 

Haec ubi dicta, cavum conversa cuspide montem 
Impulit in latus : ac venti, velut agmine facto, 
Qua data porta, ruunt et terras turbine perflant. 
Incubuere mari, totumque a sedibus imis 
Una Eurusque Notusque ruunt creberque procellis 85 

Africus, et vastos volvunt ad litora fluctus. 
Insequitur clamorque virum stridorque rudentum. 
Eripiunt subito nubes coelumque diemque 
Teucrorum ex oculis ; ponto nox incubat atra. 
Intonuere poli, et crebris micat ignibus aether, 90 

Praesentemque viris intentant omnia mortem. 
Extemplo Aeneae solvuntur frigore membra ; 
Ingemit, et duplices tendens ad sidera palmas 
Talia voce refert : O terque quaterque beati, 
Quis ante ora patrum Trojae sub moenibus altis 95 

Contigit oppetere ! o Danaum fortissime gentis 



Il6 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Tydide ! mene Iliads occumbere campis 
Non potuisse tuaque animam hanc effundere dextra, 
Saevus ubi Aeacidae telo jacet Hector, ubi ingens 
Sarpedon, ubi tot Simois correpta sub undis 100 

Scuta virum galeasque et fortia corpora volvit ? 

Talia jactanti stridens Aquilone procella 
Velum adversa ferit, fluctusque ad sidera tollit. 
Franguntur remi ; turn prora avertit, et undis 
Dat latus ; insequitur cumulo praeruptus aquae mons. 105 
Hi summo in fluctu pendent ; his unda dehiscens 
Terram inter fluctus aperit ; furit aestus arenis. 
Tres Notus abreptas in saxa latentia torquet — 
Saxa vocant Itali mediis quae in fluctibus Aras — 
Dorsum immane mari summo ; tres Eurus ab alto no 

In brevia et Syrtes urguet — miserabile visu — 
Illiditque vadis atque aggere cingit arenae. 
Unam, quae Lycios fidumque vehebat Oronten, 
Ipsius ante oculos ingens a vertice pontus 
In puppim ferit : excutitur pronusque m agister n 5 

Volvitur in caput ; ast illam ter fluctus ibidem 
Torquet agens circum, et rapidus vorat aequore vertex. 
Apparent rari nantes in gurgite vasto, 
Arma virum, tabulaeque, et Troia gaza per undas. 
Jam validam Ilionei navem, jam fortis Achatae, 120 

Et qua vectus Abas, et qua grandaevus Aletes, 
Vicit hiems ; laxis laterum compagibus omnes 
Accipiunt inimicum imbrem, rimisque fatiscunt. 

Interea magno misceri murmure pontum, 
Emissamque hiemem sensit Neptunus et imis 125 

Stagna refusa vadis, graviter commotus : et alto 
Prospiciens, summa placidum caput extulit unda. 
Disjectam Aeneae toto videt aequore classem, 
Fluctibus oppressos Troas coelique ruina, 
Nee latuere doli fratrem Junonis et irae. 130 

Eurum ad se Zephyrumque vocat, dehinc talia fatur : 

Tantane vos generis tenuit fiducia vestri ? 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. 117 

Jam coelum terramque meo sine numine, Venti, 

Miscere, et tantas audetis tollere moles ? 

Quos ego — ! Sed motos praestat componere fluctus. 135 

Post mihi non simili poena commissa luetis. 

Maturate fugam, regique haec dicite vestro : 

Non illi imperium pelagi saevumque tridentem, 

Sed mihi sorte datum. Tenet ille immania saxa, 

Vestras, Eure, domos ; ilia se jactet in aula 140 

Aeolus, et clauso ventorum carcere regnet. 

Sic ait, et dicto citius tumida aequora placat, 
Collectasque fugat nubes solemque reducit. 
Cymothoe simul et Triton adnixus acuto 
Detrudunt naves scopulo ; levat ipse tridenti ; 145 

Et vastas aperit Syrtes, et temperat aequor, 
Atque rods summas levibus perlabitur undas. 
Ac veluti magno in populo quum saepe coorta est 
Seditio, saevitque animis ignobile vulgus, 
Jamque faces et saxa volant — furor arma ministrat — 150 
Turn, pietate gravem ac meritis si forte virum quern 
Conspexere, silent arrectisque auribus adstant ; 
Ille regit dictis animos, et pectora mulcet : 
Sic cunctus pelagi cecidit fragor, aequora postquam 
Prospiciens genitor coeloque invectus aperto 15s 

Flectit equos curruque volans dat lora secundo. 

Defessi Aeneadae, quae proxima litora, cursu 
Contendunt petere, et Libyae vertuntur ad oras. 
Est in secessu longo locus : insula portum 
Efficit objectu laterum, quibus omnis ab alto 160 

Frangitur inque sinus scindit sese unda reductos ; 
Hinc atque hinc vastae rupes geminique minantur 
In coelum scopuli, quorum sub vertice late 
Aequora tuta silent ; turn silvis scena coruscis 
Desuper horrentique atrum nemus imminet umbra ; 165 
Fronte sub adversa scopulis pendentibus antrum, 
Intus aquae dulces vivoque sedilia saxo, 
Nympharum domus : hie fessas non vincula naves 



Il8 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Ulla tenent, unco non alligat ancora morsu. 

Hue septem Aeneas collectis navibus omni i 7 o 

Ex numero subit ; ac magno telluris amore 

Egressi optata potiuntur Troes arena 

Et sale tabentes artus in litore ponunt. 

Ac primum silici scintillam excudit Achates 

Succepitque ignem foliis atque arida circum 175 

Nutrimenta dedit repuitque in fomite nammam. 

Turn Cererem corruptam undis Cerealiaque arma 

Expediunt fessi rerum, frugesque receptas 

Et torrere parant flammis et frangere saxo. 

Aeneas scopulum interea conscendit et omnem 180 

Prospectum late pelago petit, Anthea si quem 
Jactatum vento videat Phrygiasque biremes, 
Aut Capyn, aut celsis in puppibus arma Caici. 
Navem in conspectu nullam, tres litore cervos 
Prospicit errantes ; hos tota armenta sequuntur 185 

A tergo, et longum per valles pascitur agmen. 
Constitit hie, arcumque' manu celeresque sagittas 
Corripuit, ridus quae tela gerebat Achates, 
Ductoresque ipsos primum, capita alta ferentes 
Cornibus arboreis, sternit, turn vulgus, et omnem 190 

Miscet agens telis nemora inter frondea turbam ; 
Nee prius absistit, quam septem ingentia victor 
Corpora fundat humi et numerum cum navibus aequet. 
Hinc portum petit, et socios partitur in omnes. 
Vina bonus quae deinde cadis onerarat Acestes 195 

Litore Trinacrio dederatque abeuntibus heros, 
Dividit, et dictis maerentia pectora mulcet : 

O socii, — neque enim ignari sumus ante malorum — 
O passi graviora, dabit deus his quo que finem. 
Vos et Scyllaeam rabiem penitusque sonantes 200 

Accestis scopulos, vos et Cyclopia saxa 
Experti : revocate animos, maestumque timorem 
Mittite : forsan et haec olim meminisse juvabit. 
Per varios casus, per tot discrimina rerum 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. II9 

Tendimus in Latium, sedes ubi fata quietas 205 

Ostendunt; illic fas regna resurgere Trojae. 
Durate, et vosmet rebus servate secundis. 

Talia voce refert, curisque ingentibus aeger 
Spem vultu simulat, premit altum corde dolorem. 
Illi se praedae accingunt dapibusque futuris : 210 

Tergora deripiunt costis et viscera nudant; 
Pars in frusta secant veribusque trementia figunt ; 
Litore aena locant alii, flammasque ministrant. 
Turn victu revocant vires, fusique per herbam 
Implentur veteris Bacchi pinguisque ferinae. 215 

Postquam exempta fames epulis mensaeque remotae, 
Amissos longo socios sermone requirunt, 
Spemque metumque inter dubii, seu vivere credant, 
Sive extrema pati nee jam exaudire vocatos. 
Praecipue pius Aeneas nunc acris Oronti, 220 

Nunc Amyci casum gemit et crudelia secum 
Fata Lyci, fortemque Gyan, fortemque Cloanthum. 

Et jam finis erat, cum Juppiter aethere summo 
Despiciens mare velivolum terrasque jacentes 
Litoraque et latos populos, sic vertice coeli 225 

Constitit et Libyae defixit lumina regnis. 
Atque ilium tales jactantem pectore curas 
Tristior et lacrimis oculos suffusa nitentes 
Alloquitur Venus : O qui res hominumque deumque 
Aeternis regis imperils, et fulmine terres, 230 

Quid meus Aeneas in te committere tantum, 
Quid Troes potuere, quibus, tot funera passis, 
Cunctus ob Italiam terrarum clauditur orbis ? 
Certe hinc Romanos olim, volventibus annis, 
Hinc fore ductores, revocato a sanguine Teucri, 23s 

Qui mare, qui terras omni ditione tenerent, 
Pollicitus, quae te, genitor, sententia vertit ? 
Hoc equidem occasum Trojae tristesque ruinas 
Solabar, fatis contraria fata rependens ; 
Nunc eadem fortuna viros tot casibus actos 240 



120 P. VIRGILII MAROfrlS 

Insequitur. Quern das finem, rex magne, laborum ? 

Antenor potuit, mediis elapsus Achivis, 

Illyricos penetrare sinus atque intima tutus 

Regna Liburnorum, et fontem superare Timavi, 

Unde per ora novem vasto cum murmure montis 2 45 

It mare proruptum et pelago premit arva sonanti. 

Hie tamen ille urbem Patavi sedesque locavit 

Teucrorum, et genti nomen dedit armaque fixit 

Troia, nunc placida compostus pace quiescit : 

Nos tua progenies, coeli quibus adnuis arcem, 250 

Navibus — infandum ! — amissis, unius ob iram 

Prodimur atque Italis longe disjungimur oris. 

Hie pietatis honos ? sic nos in sceptra reponis ? 

Olli subridens hominum sator atque deorum 
Vultu, quo coelum tempestatesque serenat, 255 

Oscula libavit natae, dehinc talia fatur : 
Parce metu, Cytherea, manent immota tuorum 
Fata tibi : cernes urbem et promissa Lavini 
Moenia, sublimemque feres ad sidera coeli 
Magnanimum Aenean ; neque me sententia vertit 260 

Hie tibi — fabor enim, quando haec te cura remordet, 
Longius et volvens fatorum arcana movebo — 
Bellum ingens geret Italia populosque feroces 
Contundet, moresque viris et moenia ponet, 
Tertia dum Latio regnantem viderit aestas, 265 

Ternaque transierint Rutulis hiberna subactis. 
At puer Ascanius, cui nunc cognomen Iulo 
Additur, — Ilus erat, dum res stetit Ilia regno — 
Triginta magnos volvendis mensibus orbes 
Imperio explebit, regnumque ab sede Lavini 270 

Transferet, et longam multa vi muniet Albam. 
Hie jam ter centum totos regnabitur annos 
Gente sub Hectorea, donee regina sacerdos 
Marte gravis geminam partu dabit Ilia prolem. 
Inde lupae fulvo nutricis tegmine laetus 27s 

Romulus excipiet gentem, et Mavortia condet 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. 121 

Moenia Romanosque suo de nomine dicet 

His ego nee metas rerum nee tempora pono ; 

Imperium sine fine dedi. Quin aspera Juno, 

Quae mare nunc terrasque metu coelumque fatigat, 280 

Consilia in melius referet, mecumque fovebit 

Romanos, rerum dominos, gentemque togatam. 

Sic placitum. Veniet lustris labentibus aetas, 

Quum domus Assaraci Phthiam clarasque Mycenas 

Servitio premet ac victis dominabitur Argis. 285 

Nascetur pulchra Trojanus origine Caesar, 

Imperium Oceano, famam qui terminet astris, 

Julius, a magno demissum nomen Iulo. 

Hunc tu olim coelo, spoliis Orientis onustum, 

Accipies secura ; vocabitur hie quoque votis. 290 

Aspera turn positis mitescent secula bellis ; 

Cana Fides, et Vesta, Remo cum fratre Quirinus, 

Jura dabunt ; dirae ferro et compagibus artis 

Claudentur Belli portae ; Furor impius intus 

Saeva sedens super arma et centum vinctus aenis 295 

Post tergum nodis fremet horridus ore cruento. 

Haec ait, et Maia genitum demittit ab alto, 
Ut terrae, utque novae pateant Karthaginis arces 
Hospitio Teucris, ne fati nescia Dido 
Finibus arceret Volat ille per aera magnum 300 

Remigio alarum, ac Libyae citus adstitit oris. 
Et jam jussa facit, ponuntque ferocia Poeni 
Corda volente.deo ; in primis regina quietum 
Accipit in Teucros animum mentemque benignam. 

At pius Aeneas, per noctem plurima volvens, 305 

Ut primum lux alma data est, exire locosque 
Explorare novos, quas v.ento accesserit oras, 
Qui teneant, nam inculta videt, hominesne feraene, 
Quaerere constituit, sociisque exacta referre. 
Classem in convexo nemorum sub rupe cavata 310 

Arboribus clausam circum atque horrentibus umbris 
Occulit ; ipse uno graditur comitatus Achate, 



122 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Bina manu lato crispans hastilia ferro. 

Cui mater media sese tulit obvia silva, 

Virginis os habitumque gerens et virginis arma, 315 

Spartanae, vel qualis equos Threissa fatigat 

Harpalyce volucremque fuga praevertitur Hebrum. 

Namque humeris de more habilem suspenderat arcum 

Venatrix, dederatque comam diffundere ventis, 

Nuda genu, nodoque sinus collecta fluentes. 320 

Ac prior, Heus, inquit, juvenes, monstrate, mearum 

Vidistis si quam hie errantem forte sororum, 

Succinctam pharetra et maculosae tegmine lyncis, 

Aut spumantis apri cursum clamore prementem. 

Sic Venus ; et Veneris contra sic Alius orsus : 325 

Nulla tuarum audita mihi neque visa sororum, 
O — quam te memorem, virgo ? namque haud tibi vultus 
Mortalis, nee vox hominem son at : o, dea certe ; 
An Phoebi soror ? an Nympharum sanguinis una ? 
Sis felix, nostrumque leves, quaecumque, laborem, 330 

Et, quo sub coelo tandem, quibus orbis in oris 
Jactemur, doceas : ignari hominumque locorumque 
Erramus, vento hue vastis et fluctibus acti : 
Multa tibi ante aras nostra cadet hostia dextra. 

Turn Venus : Haud equidem tali me dignor honore ; 335 
Virginibus Tyriis mos est gestare pharetram, 
Purpureoque alte suras vincire cothurno. 
Punica regna vides, Tyrios et Agenoris urbem ; 
Sed fines Libyci, genus intractabile bello. . 
Imperium Dido Tyria regit urbe profecta, 340 

Germanum fugiens. Longa est injuria, longae 
Ambages ; sed summa sequar fastigia rerum. 
Huic conjux Sychaeus erat, ditissimus agri 
Phoenicum, et magno miserae dilectus amore, 
Cui pater intactam dederat, primisque jugarat 345 

Ominibus. Sed regna Tyri germanus habebat 
Pygmalion, scelere ante alios immanior omnes. 
Quos inter medius venit furor. Ille Sychaeum 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. I 23 

Impius ante aras atque auri caecus amore 

Clam ferro incautum superat, securus amorum 350 

Germanae ; factumque diu celavit, et aegram, 

Multa malus simulans, vana spe lusit amantem. 

Ipsa sed in somnis inhumati venit imago 

Conjugis, ora modis attollens pallida miris ; 

Crudeles aras trajectaque pectora ferro 355 

Nudavit, caecumque domus scelus omne retexit. 

Turn celerare fugam patriaque excedere suadet, 

Auxiliumque viae veteres tellure recludit 

Thesauros, ignotum argenti pondus et auri. 

His commota fugam Dido sociosque parabat 360 

Conveniunt, quibus aut odium crudele tyranni 

Aut metus acer erat ; naves, quae forte paratae, 

Corripiunt, onerantque auro ; portantur avari 

Pygmalionis opes pelago ; dux femina facti. 

Devenere locos, ubi nunc ingentia cernis 365 

Moenia surgentemque novae Karthaginis arcem, 

Mercatique solum, facti de nomine Byrsam, 

Taurino quantum possent circumdare tergo. 

Sed vos qui tandem, quibus aut venistis ab oris, 

Quove tenetis iter ? Quaerenti talibus ille 370 

Suspirans imoque trahens a pectore vocem : 

O dea, si prima repetens ab origine pergam, 
Et vacet annales nostrorum audire laborum, 
Ante diem clauso componat Vesper Olympo. 
Nos Troja antiqua, si vestras forte per aures 375 

Trojae nomen iit, diversa per aequora vectos 
Forte sua Libycis tempestas appulit oris. 
Sum pius Aeneas, raptos qui ex hoste Penates 
Classe veho mecum, fama super aethera notus. 
Italiam quaero patriam et genus ab Jove summo. 380 

Bis denis Phrygium conscendi navibus aequor, 
Matre dea monstrante viam, data fata secutus ; 
Vix septem convulsae undis Euroque supersunt. 
Ipse ignotus, egens, Libyae deserta peragro, 



124 p - VIRGILII MARONIS 

Europa atque Asia pulsus. Nee plura querentem 385 

Passa Venus medio sic interfata dolore est : 

Quisquis es, haud, credo, invisus coelestibus auras 
Vitales carpis, Tyriam qui adveneris urbem. 
Perge modo, atque hinc te reginae ad limina perfer. 
Namque tibi reduces socios classemque relatam 39 o 

Nuntio et in tutum versis aquilonibus actam, 
Ni frustra augurium vani docuere parentes. 
Adspice bis senos laetantes agmine eyenos, 
Aetheria quos lapsa plaga Jovis ales aperto 
Turbabat coelo ; nunc terras ordine longo 395 

Aut capere aut captas jam despectare videntur : 
Ut reduces illi ludunt stridentibus alis, 
Et coetu cinxere polum, cantusque dedere, 
Haud aliter puppesque tuae pubesque tuorum 
Aut portum tenet, aut pleno subit ostia velo. 400 

Perge modo, et, qua te ducit via, dirige gressum. 

Dixit, et avertens rosea cervice refulsit, 
Ambrosiaeque comae divinum vertice odorem 
Spiravere, pedes vestis defluxit ad imos, 
Et vera incessu patuit dea. Hie ubi matrem 405 

Agnovit, tali fugientem est voce secutus : 
Quid natum toties, crudelis tu quoque, falsis 
Ludis imaginibus ? cur dextrae jungere dextram 
Non datur ac veras audire et reddere voces ? 
Talibus incusat, gressumque ad moenia tendit. 410 

At Venus obscuro gradientes aere saepsit, 
Et multo nebulae circum dea fudit amictu, 
Cernere ne quis eos, neu quis contingere posset, 
Molirive moram, aut veniendi poscere caussas. 
Ipsa Paphum sublimis abit, sedesque revisit 415 

Laeta suas, ubi templum illi, centumque Sabaeo 
Ture calent arae sertisque recentibus halant 

Corripuere viam interea, qua semita monstrat. 
Jamque ascendebant collem, qui plurimus urbi 
Imminet adversasque adspectat desuper arces. 420 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. 1 25 

Miratur molem Aeneas, magalia quondam, 

Miratur portas strepitumque et strata viarum. 

Instant ardentes Tyrii, pars ducere muros 

Molirique arcem et manibus subvolvere saxa, 

Pars optare locum tecto et concludere sulco ; 425 

Jura magistratusque legunt sanctumque senatum ; 

Hie portus alii effodiunt : hie alta theatri 

Fundamenta locant alii, immanesque columnas 

Rupibus excidunt, scenis decora alta futuris. 

Qualis apes aestate nova per florea rura 430 

Exercet sub sole labor, quum gentis adultos 

Educunt fetus, aut quum liquentia mella 

Stipant et dulci distendunt nectare cellas, 

Aut onera accipiunt venientum, aut agmine facto 

Ignavum fucos pecus a praesepibus arcent : 435 

Fervet opus, redolentque thymo fragrantia mella. 

O fortunati, quorum jam moenia surgunt ! 

Aeneas ait, et fastigia suspicit urbis. 

Infert se saeptus nebula — mirabile dictu — 

Per medios, miscetque viris, neque cernitur ulli. 440 

Lucus in urbe fuit media, laetissimus umbrae, 
Quo primum jactati undis et turbine Poeni 
ErTodere loco signum, quod regia Juno 
Monstrarat, caput acris equi : sic nam fore bello 
Egregiam et facilem victu per saecula gentem. 445 

Hie templum Junoni ingens Sidonia Dido 
Condebat, donis opulentum et numine divae, 
Aerea cui gradibus surgebant limina nexaeque 
Aere trabes, foribus cardo stridebat aenis. 
Hoc primum in luco nova res oblata timorem 450 

Leniit, hie primum Aeneas sperare salutem 
Ausus et afflictis melius conndere rebus. 
Namque sub ingenti lustrat dum singula templo, 
Reginam opperiens, dum, quae Fortuna sit urbi, 
Artificumque manus inter se operumque laborem 455 

Miratur, videt Iliacas ex ordine pugnas 



126 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Bellaque jam fama to turn vulgata per orbem, 

Atridas, Priamumque, et saevum ambobus Achillen. 

Constitit, et lacrimans, Quis jam locus, in quit, Achate, 

Quae regio in terris nostri non plena laboris ? 460 

En Priamus. Sunt hie etiam sua praemia laudi ; 

Sunt lacrimae rerum et mentem mortalia tangunt. 

Solve metus ; feret haec aliquam tibi fama salutem. 

Sic ait, atque animum pictura pascit inani, 

Multa gemens, largoque humectat flumine vultum. 465 

Namque videbat, uti bellantes Pergama circum 

Hac fugerent Graii, premeret Trojana juventus, 

Hac Phryges, instaret curru cristatus Achilles. 

Nee procul hinc Rhesi niveis tentoria velis 

Agnoscit lacrimans, primo quae prodita somno 47° 

Tydides multa vastabat caede cruentus, 

Ardentesque avertit equos in castra, prius quam 

Pabula gustassent Trojae Xanthumque bibissent. 

Parte alia fugiens amissis Troilus armis, 

Infelix puer atque impar congressus Achilli, 47s 

Fertur equis, curruque haeret resupinus inani, 

Lora tenens tamen ; huic cervixque comaeque trahuntur 

Per terram, et versa pulvis inscribitur hasta. 

Interea ad templum non aequae Palladis ibant 

Crinibus Iliades passis peplumque ferebant, 480 

Suppliciter tristes et tunsae pectora palmis ; 

Diva solo rixos oculos aversa tenebat. 

Ter circum Iliacos raptaverat Hectora muros, 

Exanimumque auro corpus vendebat Achilles. 

Turn vero ingentem gemitum dat pectore ab imo, 485 

Ut spolia, ut currus, utque ipsum corpus amici, 

Tendentemque manus Priamum conspexit inermes. 

Se quoque principibus permixtum agnovit Achivis, 

Eoasque acies et nigri Memnonis arma. 

Ducit Amazonidum lunatis agmina peltis 49° 

Penthesilea furens, mediisque in milibus ardet, 

Aurea subnectens exsertae cingula mammae, 



AENEIDQS LIB. I. 127 

Bellatrix, audetque viris concurrere virgo. 

Haec dum Dardanio Aeneae miranda videntur, 
Dum stupet, obtutuque haeret defixus in uno, 495 

Regina ad templum, forma pulcherrima Dido, 
Incessit, magna juvenum stipante caterva. 
Qualis in Eurotae ripis aut per juga Cynthi 
Exercet Diana choros, quam mille secutae 
Hinc atque hinc glomerantur Oreades ; ilia pharetram 500 
Fert humero, gradiensque deas supereminet omnes ; 
Latonae taciturn pertentant gaudia pectus : 
Talis erat Dido, talem se laeta ferebat 
Per medios, instans operi regnisque futuris. 
Turn foribus divae, media testudine templi, 505 

Saepta armis, solioque alte subnixa resedit. 
Jura dabat legesque viris, operumque laborem 
Partibus aequabat justis, aut sorte trahebat : 
Quum subito Aeneas concursu accedere magno 
Anthea Sergestumque videt fortemque Cloanthum, 510 

Teucrorumque alios, ater quos aequore turbo 
Dispulerat penitusque alias avexerat oras. 
Obstupuit simul ipse simul perculsus Achates 
Laetitiaque metuque ; avidi conjungere dextras 
Ardebant ; sed res animos incognita turbat. 515 

Dissimulant, et nube cava speculantur amicti, 
Quae fortuna viris, classem quo litore linquant, 
Quid veniant ; cunctis nam lecti navibus ibant, 
Orantes veniam, et templum clamore petebant. 

Postquam introgressi et coram data copia fandi, 52c 

Maximus Ilioneus placido sic pectore coepit : 
O Regina, novam cui condere Juppiter urbem 
Justitiaque dedit gentes frenare superbas, 
Troes te miseri, ventis maria omnia vecti, 
Oramus, prohibe infandos a navibus ignes, 52* 

Parce pio generi, et propius res adspice nostras. 
Non nos aut ferro Libycos populare Penates 
Venimus, aut raptas ad litora vertere praedas ; 



128 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Non ea vis animo, nee tanta superbia victis. 

Est locus, Hesperiam Graii cognomine dicunt, 530 

Terra antiqua, potens armis atque ubere glaebae ; 

Oenotri coluere viri ; nunc fama, minores 

Italiam dixisse ducis de nomine gentem. 

Hie cursus fuit : 

Quum subito adsurgens fluctu nimbosus Orion 535 

In vada caeca tulit, penitusque procacibus austris 

Perque undas, superante salo, perque invia saxa 

Dispulit j hue pauci vestris adnavimus oris. 

Quod genus hoc hominum ? quaeve hunc tarn barbara morem 

Permittit patria ? hospitio prohibemur arenae ; 540 

Bella cient, primaque vetant consistere terra. 

Si genus humanum et mortalia temnitis arma, 

At sperate deos memores fandi atque nefandi. 

Rex erat Aeneas nobis, quo justior alter, 

Nee pietate fuit nee bello major et armis. 54s 

Quem si fata virum servant, si vescitur aura 

Aetheria, neque adhuc crudelibus occubat umbris, 

Non metus j officio nee te certasse priorem 

Poeniteat. Sunt et Siculis regionibus urbes 

Armaque,Trojanoque a sanguine clarus Acestes. 55° 

Quassatam ventis liceat subducere classem, 

Et silvis aptare trabes et stringere remos, 

Si datur Italiam, sociis et rege recepto, 

Tendere, ut Italiam laeti Latiumque petamus, 

Sin absumpta salus, et te, pater optime Teucrum, 555 

Pontus habet Libyae, nee spes jam restat Iuli, 

At freta Sicaniae saltern sedesque paratas, 

Unde hue advecti, regemque petamus Acesten. " 

Talibus Ilioneus ; cuncti simul ore fremebant 

Dardanidae. 560 

Turn breviter Dido, vultum demissa, profatur : 
Solvite corde metum, Teucri, secludite curas. 
Res dura et regni novitas me talia cogunt 
Moliri, et late fines custode tueri. 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. 1 29 

Quis genus Aeneadum, quis Trojae nesciat urbem, 565 

Virtutesque virosque, aut tanti incendia belli ? 

Non obtunsa adeo gestamus pectora Poeni, 

Nee tarn aversus equos Tyria Sol jungit ab urbe. 

Seu vos Hesperiam magnam Saturniaque arva, 

Sive Erycis fines regemque optatis Acesten, 57° 

Auxilio tutos dimittam, opibusque juvabo. 

Vultis et his mecum pariter considere regnis ? 

Urbem quam statuo, vestra est ; subducite naves ; 

Tros Tyriusque mihi nullo discrimine agetur. 

Atque utinam rex ipse Noto compulsus eodem 575 

Afforet Aeneas ! Equidem per litora certos 

Dimittam et Libyae lustrare extrema jubebo, 

Si quibus ejectus silvis aut urbibus errat. 

His animum arrecti dictis et fortis Achates 
Et pater Aeneas jamdudum erumpere nubem 580 

Ardebant. Prior Aenean compellat Achates : 
Nate dea, quae nunc animo sententia surgit ? 
Omnia tuta vides, classem sociosque receptos. 
Unus abest, medio in fluctu quern vidimus ipsi 
Submersum ; dictis respondent cetera matris. 585 

Vix ea fatus erat, quum circumfusa repente 
Scindit se nubes et in aethera purgat apertum. 
Restitit Aeneas claraque in luce refulsit, 
Os humerosque deo similis ; namque ipsa decoram 
Caesariem nato genetrix lumenque juventae 59° 

Purpureum et laetos oculis arBarat honores : 
Quale manus addunt ebori decus, aut ubi flavo 
Argentum Pariusve lapis circumdatur auro. 
Turn sic reginam alloquitur, cunctisque repente 
Inprovisus ait : Coram, quern quaeritis, adsum, 595 

Troius Aeneas, Libycis ereptus ab undis. 
O sola infancfos Trojae miserata labores, 
Quae nos, reliquias Danaum, terraeque marisque 
Omnibus exhaustos jam casibus, omnium egenos, 
Urbe, domo, socias, grates persolvere dignas 600 

9 



130 P. VIRGILII MARONIS * 

Non opis est nostrae, Dido, nee quidquid ubique est 

Gentis Dardaniae, magnum quae sparsa per orbem. 

Di tibi, si qua pios respectant numina, si quid 

Usquam justitia est et mens sibi conscia recti, 

Praemia digna ferant. Quae te tarn laeta tulerunt 605 

Saecula ? qui tanti talem genuere parentes ? 

In freta dum fluvii current, dum montibus umbrae 

Lustrabunt convexa, polus dum sidera pascet, 

Semper honos nomenque tuum laudesque manebunt, 

Quae me cumque vocant terrae. Sic fatus, amicum 610 

Ilionea petit dextra, laevaque Serestum, 

Post alios, fortemque Gyan, fortemque Cloanthum. 

Obstupuit primo adspectu Sidonia Dido, 
Casu deinde viri tanto, et sic ore locuta est : 
Quis te, nate dea, per tanta pericula casus 615 

Insequitur ? quae vis immanibus applicat oris ? 
Tune ille Aeneas, quem Dardanio Anchisae 
Alma Venus Phrygii genuit Simoentis ad undam ? 
Atque equidem Teucrum memini Sidona venire 
Finibus expulsum patriis, nova regna petentem 620 

Auxilio Beli ; genitor turn Belus opimam 
Vastabat Cyprum, et victor ditione tenebat. 
Tempore jam ex illo casus mihi cognitus urbis 
Trojanae nomenque tuum regesque Pelasgi. 
Ipse hostis Teucros insigni laude ferebat, 625 

Seque ortum antiqua Teucrorum ab stirpe volebat. 
Quare agite, o tectis, juvenes, succedite nostris. 
Me quoque per multos similis fortuna labores 
Jactatam hac demum voluit consistere terra. 
Non ignara mali miseris succurrere disco. 630 

Sic memorat ; simul Aenean in regia ducit 
Tecta, simul divum templis indicit honorem. 
Nee minus interea sociis ad litora mittit 
Viginti tauros, magnorum horrentia centum 
Terga suum, pingues centum cum matribus agnos, 6 35 

Munera laetitiamque dei. 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. 131 

At domus interior regali splendida luxu 

Instruitur, mediisque parant convivia tectis : 

Arte laboratae vestes ostroque superbo, 

Ingens argentum mensis, caelataque in auro 640 

Fortia facta patrum, series longissima rerum 

Per tot ducta viros antiquae ab origine gentis. 

Aeneas — neque enim patrius consistere mentem 
Passus amor — rapidum ad naves praemittit Achaten, 
Ascanio ferat haec, ipsumque ad moenia ducat \ 6 45 

Omnis in Ascanio cari stat cura parentis. 
Munera praeterea, Iliacis erepta ruinis, 
Ferre jubet, pallam signis auroque rigentem, 
Et circumtextum croceo velamen acantho, 
Ornatus Argivae Helenae, quos ilia Mycenis, 650 

Pergama quum peteret inconcessosque Hymenaeos, 
Extulerat, matris Ledae mirabile donum : 
Praeterea sceptrum, Ilione quod gesserat olim, 
Maxima natarum Priami, colloque monile 
Baccatum, et duplicem gemmis auroque coronam. 6 5s 

Haec celerans iter ad naves tendebat Achates. 

At Cytherea novas artes, nova pectore versat 
Consilia, ut faciem mutatus et ora Cupido 
Pro dulci Ascanio veniat, donisque furentem 
Incendat reginam, atque ossibus implicet ignem ; 660 

Quippe domum timet ambiguam Tyriosque bilingues ; 
Urit atrox Juno, et sub noctem cura recursat. 
Ergo his aligerum dictis affatur Amorem : 
Nate, meae vires, mea magna potentia solus, 
Nate, patris summi qui tela Typhoia temnis, 665 

Ad te confugio et supplex tua numina posco. 
Frater ut Aeneas pelago tuus omnia circum 
Litora jactetur pdiis Junonis iniquae, 
Nota tibi, et nostro doluisti saepe dolore. 
Hunc Phoenissa tenet -Dido blandisque moratur 670 

Vocibus ; et vereor, quo se Junonia vertant 
Hospitia ; haud tanto cessabit cardine rerum. 



132 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Quocirca capere ante dolis et cingere flamma 

Reginam meditor, ne quo se numine mutet, 

Sed magno Aeneae mecum teneatur amore. 675 

Qua facere id possis, nostram nunc accipe mentem : 

Regius accitu cari genitoris ad urbem 

Sidoniam puer ire parat, mea maxima cura, 

Dona ferens, pelago et flammis restantia Trojae ; 

Hunc ego sopitum somno super alta Cythera 680 

Aut super Idalium sacrata sede recondam, 

Ne qua scire dolos mediusve occurrere possit. 

Tu faciem illius noctem non amplius unam 

Falle dolo, et notos pueri puer indue vultus, 

Ut, quum te gremio accipiet laetissima Dido 685 

Regales inter mensas laticemque Lyaeum, 

Quum dabit amplexus atque oscula dulcia figet, 

Occultum inspires ignem fallasque veneno. 

Paret Amor dictis carae genetricis, et alas 

Exuit, et gressu gaudens incedit Iuli. 690 

At Venus Ascanio placidam per membra quietem 

Irrigat, et forum gremio dea tollit in altos 

Idaliae lucos, ubi mollis amaracus ilium 

Floribus et dulci adspirans complectitur umbra. 

Jamque ibat dicto parens et dona Cupido 69s 

Regia portabat Tyriis, duce laetus Achate. 
Quum venit, aulaeis jam se regina superbis 
Aurea composuit sponda mediamque locavit. 
Jam pater Aeneas et jam Trojana juventus 
Conveniunt, stratoque super discumbitur ostro. 7°° 

Dant famuli manibus lymphas, Cereremque canistris 
Expediunt, tonsisque ferunt mantelia villis. 
Quinquaginta intus famulae, quibus ordine longam 
Cura penum struere, et flammis adolere Penates ; 
Centum aliae totidemque pares aetate ministri, 705 

Qui dapibus mensas onerent et pocula ponant. 
Nee non et Tyrii per limina laeta frequentes 
Convenere, toris jussi discumbere pictis. 



AENEIDOS LIB. I. 1 33 

Mirantur dona Aeneae, mirantur Iulum 

Flagrantesque dei vultus simulataque verba, 710 

Pallamque et pictum croceo velamen acantho. 

Praecipue infelix, pesti devota futurae, 

Expleri mentem nequit ardescitque tuendo 

Phoenissa, et pariter puero donisque movetur. 

Ille ubi complexu Aeneae colloque pependit 715 

Et magnum falsi implevit genitoris amorem, 

Reginam petit. Haec oculis, haec pectore toto 

Haeret et interdum gremio fovet, inscia Dido, 

Insideat quantus miserae deus. At memor ille 

Matris Acidaliae paulatim abolere Sychaeum 720 

Incipit, et vivo tentat praevertere amore 

Jam pridem resides animos desuetaque corda. 

Postquam prima quies epulis, mensaeque remotae, 
Crateras magnos statuunt et vina coronant. 
Fit strepitus tectis, vocemque per ampla volutant 725 

Atria ; dependent lychni laquearibus aureis 
Incensi, et noctem flammis funalia vincunt. 
Hie regina gravem gemmis auroque poposcit 
Implevitque mero pateram, quam Belus et omnes 
A Belo solid ; turn facta silentia tectis : 730 

Juppiter, hospitibus nam te dare jura loquuntur, 
Hunc laetum Tyriisque diem Trojaque profectis 
Esse velis, nostrosque hujus meminisse minores. 
Adsit laetitiae Bacchus dator, et bona Juno , 
Et vos, o coetum, Tyrii, celebrate faventes. 735 

Dixit, et in mensam laticum libavit honorem, 
Primaque, libato, summo tenus attigit ore ; 
Turn Bitiae dedit increpitans ; ille impiger hausit 
Spumantem pateram, et pleno se proluit auro ; 
Post alii proceres. Cithara crinitus Iopas 74 o 

Personat aurata, docuit quem maximus Atlas. 
Hie canit errantem lunam solisque labores ; 
Unde hominum genus et pecudes ; unde imber et ignes ; 
Arcturum pluviasque Hyadas geminosque Triones ; 



134 p - VIRGILII MARONIS 

Quid tantum Oceano properent se tinguere soles 745 

Hiberni, vel quae tardis mora noctibus obstet. 

Ingeminant plausu Tyrii, Troesque sequuntur. 

Nee non et vario noctem sermone trahebat 

Infelix Dido, longumque bibebat amorem, 

Multa super Priamo rogitans, super Hectore multa ; 75° 

Nunc, quibus Aurorae venisset nlius armis, 

Nunc, quales Diomedis equi, nunc, quantus Achilles. 

Immo age, et a prima die, hospes, origine nobis 

Insidias, inquit, Danaum, casusque tuorum, 

Erroresque tuos ; nam te jam septima portat 755 

Omnibus errantem terris et fluctibus aestas. 



LIBER II. 



Conticuere omnes, intentique ora tenebant. 
Inde toro pater Aeneas sic orsus ab alto : 

Infandum, Regina, jubes renovare dolorem, 
Trojanas ut opes et lamentabile regnum 
Eruerint Danai ; quaeque ipse miserrima vidi, 5 

Et quorum pars magna fui. Quis talia fando 
Myrmidonum Dolopumve aut duri miles Ulixi 
Temperet a lacrimis ? et jam nox humida coelo 
Praecipitat, suadentque cadentia sidera somnos. 
Sed si tantus amor casus cognoscere nostras- 10 

Et breviter Trojae supremum audire laborem, 
Quamquam animus meminisse horret, luctuque refugit, 
Incipiam. Fracti bello fatisque repulsi 
Ductores Danaum, tot jam labentibus annis, 
Instar montis equum divina Palladis arte 15 

Aedificant, sectaque intexunt abiete costas ; 
Votum pro reditu simulant ; ea fama vagatur. 
Hue delecta virum sortiti corpora furtim 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 135 

Includunt caeco lateri, penitusque cavernas 

Ingentes uterumque armato milite complent. 20 

Est in conspectu Tenedos, notissima fama 
Insula, dives opum, Priami dum regna manebant, 
Nunc tantum sinus et statio male fida carinis ; 
Hue se provecti deserto in litore condunt. 
Nos abiisse rati et vento petiisse Mycenas. 25 

Ergo omnis longo solvit se Teucria luctu. 
Panduntur portae ; juvat ire et Dorica castra 
Desertosque videre locos litusque relictum. 
Hie Dolopum manus, hie saevus tendebat Achilles ; 
Classibus hie locus ; hie acie certare solebant. 3° 

Pars stupet innuptae donum exitiale Minervae 
Et molem mirantur equi ; primusque Thymoetes 
Duci intra muros hortatur et arce locari, 
Sive dolo, seu jam Trojae sic fata ferebant. 
At Capys, et quorum melior sententia menti, 35 

Aut pelago Danaum insidias suspectaque dona 
Praecipitare jubent, subjectisque urere flammis, 
Aut terebrare cavas uteri et tentare latebras. 
Scinditur incertum studia in contraria vulgus. 

Primus ibi ante omnes, magna comitante caterva, 40 
Laocoon ardens summa decurrit ab arce, 
Et procul : O miseri, quae tanta insania, cives ? 
Creditis avectos hostis ? aut ulla putatis 
Dona carere dolis Danaum ? sic notus Ulixes ? 
Aut hoc inclusi ligno occultantur Achivi, 45 

Aut haec in nostros fabricata est machina muros 
Inspectura domos venturaque desuper urbi, 
Aut aliquis latet error • equo ne credite, Teucri. 
Quidquid id est, timeo Danaos et dona ferentes. 
Sic fatus validis ingentem viribus hastam 50 

In latus inque feri curvam compagibus alvum 
Contorsit. Stetit ilia tremens, uteroque recusso 
Insonuere cavae gemitumque dedere cavernae. 
Et, si fata deum, si mens non laeva fuisset, 



136 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Impulerat ferro Argolicas foedare latebras, 55 

Trojaque, nunc stares, Priamique arx alta, maneres. 

Ecce, manus juvenem interea post terga revinctum 
Pastores magno ad regem clamore trahebant 
Dardanidae, qui se ignotum venientibus ultro, 
Hoc ipsum ut strueret Trojamque aperiret Achivis, 60 

Obtulerat, fidens animi, atque in utrumque paratus, 
Seu versare dolos, seu certae occumbere morti. 
Undique visendi studio Trojana juventus 
Circumfusa ruit, certantque illudere capto. 
Accipe nunc Danaum insidias, et crimine ab uno 65 

Disce omnes. 

Namque ut conspectu in medio turbatus, inermis, 
Constitit atque oculis Phrygia agmina circumspexit : 
Heu, quae nunc tellus, inquit, quae me aequora possunt 
Accipere ? aut quid jam misero mihi denique restat, 70 
Cui neque apud Danaos usquam locus, et super ipsi 
Dardanidae infensi poenas cum sanguine poscunt? 
Quo gemitu conversi animi, compressus et omnis 
Impetus. Hortamur fari ; quo sanguine cretus, 
Quidve ferat, memoret, quae sit fiducia capto. 75 

[Ille haec, deposita tandem formidine, fatur :] 

Cuncta equidem tibi, Rex, merit quodcumque, fatebor 
Vera, inquit ; neque me Argolica de gente negabo ; 
Hoc primum ; nee, si miserum Fortuna Sinonem 
Finxit, vanum etiam mendacemque improba finget. 80 

Fando aliquod si forte tuas pervenit ad aures 
Belidae nomen Palamedis et incluta fama 
Gloria, quern falsa sub proditione Pelasgi 
Insontem infando indicio, quia bella vetabat, 
Demisere neci, nunc cassum lumine lugent : 85 

Illi me comitem et consanguinitate propinquum 
Pauper in arma pater primis hue misit ab annis. 
Dum stabat regno incolumis regumque vigebat 
Consiliis, et nos aliquod nomenque decusque 
Gessimus. Invidia postquam pellacis Ulixi — 90 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 



137 



Haud ignota loquor — superis concessit ab oris, 

Affiictus vitam in tenebris luctuque trahebam, 

Et casum insontis mecum indignabar amici. 

Nee tacui demens, et me, fors si qua tulisset, 

Si patrios umquam remeassem victor ad Argos, 95 

Promisi ultorem, et verbis odia aspera movi. 

Hinc mihi prima mali labes, hinc semper Ulixes 

Criminibus terrere novis, hinc spargere voces 

In vulgum ambiguas, et quaerere conscius arma. 

Nee requievit enim, donee Calchante ministro — 100 

Sed quid ego haec autem nequidquam ingrata revolvo ? 

Quidve moror, si omnes uno ordine habetis Achivos, 

Idque audire sat est ? Jamdudum sumite poenas ; 

Hoc Ithacus velit, et magno mercentur Atridae. 

Turn vero ardemus scitari et quaerere caussas, 105 

Ignari scelerum tantorum artisque Pelasgae. 
Prosequitur pavitans, et ficto pectore fatur : 

Saepe fugam Danai Troja cupiere relicta 
Moliri et longo fessi discedere bello ; 
Fecissentque utinam ! saepe illos aspera ponti no 

Interclusit hiems, et terruit Auster euntes. 
Praecipue, quum jam hie trabibus contextus acernis 
Staret equus, toto sonuerunt aethere nimbi. 
Suspensi Eurypylum scitantem oracula Phoebi 
Mittimus, isque adytis haec tristia dicta reportat : 115 

Sanguine placastis ventos et virgine caesa, 
Quum primum Iliacas, Danai, venistis ad oras ; 
Sanguine quaerendi reditus, animaque litandum 
Argolica. Vulgi quae vox ut venit ad aures, 
Obstupuere animi, gelidusque per ima cucurrit 120 

Ossa tremor, cui fata parent, quern poscat Apollo. 
Hie Ithacus vatem magno Calchanta tumultu 
Protrahit in medios ; quae sint ea numina divum, 
Flagitat. Et mihi jam multi crudele canebant 
Artificis scelus, et taciti ventura videbant. 125 

Bis quinos silet ille dies, tectusque recusat 



138 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Prodere voce sua quemquam aut opponere morti. 

Vix tandem, magnis Ithaci clamoribus actus, 

Composito rumpit vocem, et me destinat arae. 

Adsensere omnes, et, quae sibi quisque timebat, 130 

Unius in miseri exitium conversa tulere. 

Jamque dies infanda aderat ; mihi sacra parari, 

Et salsae fruges, et circum tempora vittae. 

Eripui, fateor, letome, et vincula rupi, 

Limosoque lacu per noctem obscurus in ulva 135 

Delitui, dum vela darent, si forte dedissent. 

Nee mihi jam patriam antiquam spes ulla videndi, 

Nee dulces natos exoptatumque parentem ; 

Quos illi fors et poenas ob nostra reposcent 

Effugia, et culpam hanc miserorum morte piabunt. 140 

Quod te per superos et conscia numina veri, 

Per, si qua est, quae restet adhuc mortalibus usquam 

Intemerata fides, oro, miserere laborum 

Tantorum, miserere animi non digna ferentis. 

His lacrimis vitam damus, et miserescimus ultro. 14s 
Ipse viro primus manicas atque arta levari 
Vincla jubet Priamus, dictisque ita fatur amicis : 
Quisquis es, amissos hinc jam obliviscere Graios; 
Noster eris, mihique haec edissere vera roganti : 
Quo molem hanc immanis equi statuere ? quis auctor ? 150 
Quidve petunt ? quae religio ? aut quae machina belli ? 
Dixerat. Ille, dolis instructus et arte Pelasga, 
Sustulit exutas vinclis ad sidera palmas : 
Vos, aeterni ignes, et non violabile vestrum 
Testor numen, ait, vos arae ensesque nefandi, 155 

Quos fugi, vittaeque deum, quas hostia gessi : 
Fas mihi Graiorum sacrata resolvere jura, 
Fas odisse viros, atque omnia ferre sub auras, 
Si qua tegunt ; teneor patriae nee legibus ullis. 
Tu modo promissis maneas, servataque serves 160 

Troja fidem, si vera feram, si magna rependam. 

Omnis spes Danaum et coepti fiducia belli 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 139 

Palladis auxiliis semper stetit. Impius ex quo 

Tydides sed enim scelerumque inventor Ulixes, 

Fatale aggressi sacrato avellere templo 165 

Palladium, caesis summae custodibus arcis, 

Corripuere sacram effigiem, manibusque cruentis 

Virgineas ausi divae contingere vittas, 

Ex illo fluere ac retro sublapsa referri 

Spes Danaum, fractae vires, aversa deae mens. 170 

Nee dubiis ea signa dedit Tritonia monstris. 

Vix positum castris simulacrum : arsere coruscae 

Luminibus flammae arrectis, salsusque per artus 

Sudor iit, terque ipsa solo — mirabile dictu — 

Emicuit, parmamque ferens hastamque trementem. 175 

Extemplo tentanda fuga canit aequora Calchas, 

Nee posse Argolicis exscindi Pergama telis, 

Omina ni repetant Argis, numenque reducant, 

Quod pelago et curvis secum avexere carinis. 

Et nunc, quod patrias vento petiere Mycenas, 180 

Arma deosque parant comites, pelagoque remenso 

Improvisi aderunt. Ita digerit omina Calchas. 

Hanc pro Palladio moniti, pro numine laeso 

Effigiem statuere, nefas quae triste piaret. 

Hanc tamen immensam Calchas attollere molem 185 

Roboribus textis coeloque educere jussit, 

Ne recipi portis, aut duci in moenia possit, 

Neu populum antiqua sub religione tueri. 

Nam si vestra manus violasset dona Minervae, 

Turn magnum exitium — quod di prius omen in ipsum 190 

Convertant ! — Priami imperio Phrygibusque futurum ; 

Sin manibus vestris vestram ascendisset in urbem, 

Ultro Asiam magno Pelopea ad moenia bello 

Venturam, et nostros ea fata manere nepotes. 

Talibus insidiis perjurique arte Sinonis 195 

Credita res, captique dolis lacrimisque coactis, 
Quos neque Tydides, nee Larissaeus Achilles, 
Non anni domuere decern, non mille carinae. 



140 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Hie aliud majus miseris multoque tremendum 
Objicitur magis, atque improvida pectora turbat. 200 

Laocoon, ductus Neptuno sorte sacerdos, 
Sollemnes taurum ingentem mactabat ad aras. 
Ecce autem gemini a Tenedo tranquilla per alta — 
Horresco referens — immensis orbibus angues 
Incumbunt pelago, pariterque ad litora tendunt ; 205 

Pectora quorum inter fluctus arrecta jubaeque 
Sanguineae superant undas ; pars cetera pontum 
Pone legit sinuatque immensa volumine terga. 
Fit sonitus spumante salo ; jamque arva tenebant, 
Ardentesque oculos suffecti sanguine et igni, 210 

Sibila lambebant Unguis vibrantibus ora. 
DirTugimus visu exsangues. Illi agmine certo 
Laocoonta petunt ; et primum parva duorum 
Corpora natorum serpens amplexus uterque 
Implicat et miseros morsu depascitur artus ; 215 

Post ipsum, auxilio subeuntem ac tela ferentem, 
Corripiunt, spirisque ligant ingentibus ; et jam 
Bis medium amplexi, bis collo squamea circum 
Terga dati, superant capite et cervicibus altis. 
Ille simul manibus tendit divellere nodos, 220 

Perfusus sanie vittas atroque veneno, 
Clamores simul horrendos ad sidera tollit : 
Quales mugitus, fugit quum saucius aram 
Taurus et incertam excussit cervice securim. 
At gemini lapsu delubra ad summa dracones 225 

Effugiunt saevaeque petunt Tritonidis arcem, 
Sub pedibusque deae clipeique sub orbe teguntur. 
Turn vero tremefacta novus per pectora cunctis 
Insinuat pavor, et scelus expendisse merentem 
Laocoonta ferunt, sacrum qui cuspide robur 230 

Laeserit et tergo sceleratam intorserit hastam. 
Ducendum ad sedes simulacrum orandaque divae 
Numina conclamant. 
Dividimus muros et moenia pandimus urbis. 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 141 

Accingunt omnes operi, pedibusque rotarum 235 

Subjiciunt lapsus, et stuppea vincula collo 

Intendunt. Scandit fatalis machina muros, 

Feta armis. Pueri circum innuptaeque puellae 

Sacra canunt, funemque manu contingere gaudent. 

Ilia subit, mediaeque minans illabitur urbi. 240 

O patria, o divum domus Ilium, et incluta bello 

Moenia Dardanidum ! quater ipso in limine portae 

Substitit, atque utero sonitum quater arma dedere ; 

Instamus tamen immemores caecique furore, 

Et monstrum infelix sacrata sistimus arce. 245 

Tunc etiam fatis aperit Cassandra futuris 

Ora, dei jussu non umquam credita Teucris. 

Nos delubra deum miseri, quibus ultimus esset 

Ille dies, festa velamus fronde per urbem. 

Vertitur interea coelum et ruit oceano Nox, 250 

Involvens umbra magna terramque polumque 
Myrmidonumque dolos ; fusi per moenia Teucri 
Conticuere ; sopor fessos complectitur artus. 
Et jam Argiva phalanx instructis navibus ibat 
A Tenedo, tacitae per arnica silentia lunae 2 S s 

Litora nota petens, flammas quum regia puppis 
Extulerat, fatisque deum defensus iniquis 
Inclusos utero Danaos et pinea furtim 
Laxat claustra Sinon. Illos patefactus ad auras 
Reddit equus, laetique cavo se robore promunt 260 

Thessandrus Sthenelusque duces et dims Ulixes, 
Demissum lapsi per funem, Acamasque, Thoasque, 
Pelidesque Neoptolemus, primusque Machaon, 
Et Menelaus, et ipse doli fabricator Epeus. 
Invadunt urbem somno vinoque sepultam ; 265 

Caeduntur vigiles, portisque patentibus omnes 
Accipiunt socios atque agmina conscia jungunt. 

Tempus erat, quo prima quies mortalibus aegris 
Incipit et dono divum gratissima serpit. 
In somnis, ecce, ante oculos maestissimus Hector 270 



142 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Visus adesse mihi, largosque effundere fletus, 

Raptatus bigis, ut quondam, aterque cruento 

Pulvere, perque pedes trajectus lora tumentes. 

Hei mihi, qualis erat ! quantum mutatus ab illo 

Hectore, qui redit exuvias indutus Achilli, 275 

Vel Danaum Phrygios jaculatus puppibus ignes ! 

Squalentem barbam et concretos sanguine crines 

Vulneraque ilia gerens, quae circum plurima muros 

Accepit patrios. Ultro flens ipse videbar 

Compellare virum et maestas expromere voces : 280 

O lux Dardaniae, spes o fidissima Teucrum, 

Quae tantae tenuere morae ? quibus Hector ab oris 

Exspectate venis ? ut te post multa tuorum 

Funera, post varios hominumque urbisque labores 

Defessi adspicimus ! quae caussa indigna serenos 285 

Foedavit vultus ? aut cur haec vulnera cerno ? 

Ille nihil, nee me quaerentem vana moratur, 

Sed graviter gemitus imo de pectore ducens, 

Heu fuge, nate dea, teque his, ait, eripe flammis. 

Hostis habet muros ; ruit alto a culmine Troja. 290 

Sat patriae Priamoque datum : si Pergama dextra 

Defendi possent, etiam hac defensa fuissent : 

Sacra suosque tibi commendat Troja Penates : 

Hos cape fatorum comites, his moenia quaere 

Magna, pererrato statues quae denique ponto. 295 

Sic ait, et manibus vittas Vestamque potentem 

Aeternumque adytis effert penetralibus ignem. 

Diverso interea miscentur moenia luctu, 
Et magis atque magis, quamquam secreta parentis 
Anchisae domus arboribusque obtecta recessit, 300 

Clarescunt sonitus, armorumque ingruit horror. 
Excutior somno, et summi fastigia tecti 
Ascensu supero, atque arrectis auribus adsto : 
In segetem veluti quum flamma furentibus austris 
Incidit, aut rapidus montano flumine torrens 305 

Sternit agros, sternit sata laeta boumque labores, 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 1 43 

Praecipitesque trahit silvas, stupet inscius alto 

Accipiens sonitum saxi de vertice pastor. 

Turn vero manifesta fides, Danaumque patescunt 

Insidiae. Jam Deiphobi dedit ampla ruinam 310 

Vulcano superante domus, jam proximus ardet 

Ucalegon j Sigea igni freta lata relucent. 

Exoritur clamorque virum clangorque tubarum. 

Arma amens capio ; nee sat rationis in armis ; 

Sed glomerare manum bello et concurrere in arcem 315 

Cum sociis ardent animi ; furor iraque mentem 

Praecipitant, pulchrumque mori succurrit in armis. 

Ecce autem telis Panthus elapsus Achivum, 
Panthus Othryades, arcis Phoebique sacerdos, 
Sacra manu victosque deos parvumque nepotem 320 

Ipse trahit, cursuque amens ad limina tendit. 
Quo res summa loco, Panthu ? quam prendimus arcem ? 
Vix ea fatus eram, gemitu cum talia reddit : 
Venit summa dies et ineluctabile tempus 
Dardaniae. Fuimus Troes, fuit Ilium et ingens 325 

Gloria Teucrorum ; ferus omnia Juppiter Argos 
Transtulit : incensa Danai dominantur in urbe. 
Arduus armatos mediis in moenibusadstans 
Fundit equus, victorque Sinon incendia miscet 
Insultans. Portis alii bipatentibus adsunt, 330 

Milia quot magnis umquam venere Mycenis ; 
Obsedere alii telis angusta viarum 
Oppositi ; stat ferri acies mucrone corusco 
Stricta, parata neci ; vix primi proelia tentant 
Portarum vigiles, et caeco Marte resistunt. 33s 

Talibus Othryadae dictis et numine divum 
In flammas et in arma feror, quo tristis Erinnys, 
Quo fremitus vocat et sublatus ad aethera clamor. 
Addunt se socios Rhipeus et maximus armis 
Epytus, oblati per lunam, Hypanisque Dymasque, 340 

Et lateri agglomerant nostro, juvenisque Coroebus, 
Mygdonides. Illis ad Trojam forte diebus 



144 P- VIRGILII MARONIS 

Venerat, insano Cassandrae incensus amore, 

Et gener auxilium Priamo Phrygibusque ferebat, 

Infelix, qui non sponsae praecepta furentis 345 

Audierit. 

Quos ubi confertos audere in proelia vidi, 

Incipio super his : Juvenes, fortissima frustra 

Pectora, si vobis audentem extrema cupido 

Certa sequi, quae sit rebus fortuna videtis : 350 

Excessere omnes, adytis arisque relictis, 

Di, quibus imperium hoc steterat ; succurritis urbi 

Incensae ; moriamur, et in media arma ruamus. 

Una salus victis, nullam sperare salutem. 

Sic animis juvenum furor additus. Inde, lupi ceu 355 

Raptores atra in nebula, quos improba ventris 

Exegit caecos rabies, catulique relicti 

Faucibus exspectant siccis, per tela, per hostes 

Vadimus haud dubiam in mortem, mediaeque tenemus 

Urbis iter \ nox atra cava circumvolat umbra. 360 

Quis cladem illius noctis, quis funera fan do 

Explicet, aut possit lacrimis aequare labores ? 

Urbs antiqua ruit, multos dominata per annos ; 

Plurima perque vias sternuntur inertia passim 

Corpora perque domos et religiosa deorum 365 

Limina. Nee soli poenas dant sanguine Teucri ; 

Quondam etiam victis redit in praecordia virtus 

Victoresque cadunt Danai. Crudelis ubique 

Luctus, ubique pavor, et plurima mortis imago. 

Primus se, Danaum magna comitante caterva, 370 

Androgeos offert nobis, socia agmina credens 
Inscius, atque ultro verbis compellat amicis : 
Festinate, viri. Nam quae tarn sera moratur 
Segnities ? Alii rapiunt incensa feruntque 
Pergama • vos celsis nunc primum a navibus itis. 375 

Dixit, et extemplo, neque enim responsa dabantur 
Fida satis, sensit medios delapsus in hostes. 
Obstupuit, retroque pedem cum voce repressit 






AENEIDOS LIB. II. 1 45 

Improvisum aspns veluti qui sentibus anguem 

Pressit humi nitens, trepidusque repente refugit 380 

Attollentem iras et caerula colla tumentem \ 

Haud secus Androgeos visu tremefactus abibat. 

Irruimus, densis et circumfundimur armis, 

Ignarosque loci passim et formidine captos 

Sternimus. Adspirat primo fortuna labori. 385 

Atque hie successu exsultans animisque Coroebus, 

O socii, qua prima, inquit, fortuna salutis 

Monstrat iter, quaque ostendit se dextra, sequamur : 

Mutemus clipeos, Danaumque insignia nobis 

Aptemus. Dolus an virtus, quis in hoste requirat ? 39 o 

Arma dabunt ipsi. Sic fatus, deinde comantem 

Androgei galeam clipeique insigne decorum 

Induitur, laterique Argivum accommodat ensem. 

Hoc Rhipeus, hoc ipse Dymas omnisque juventus 

Laeta facit ; spoliis se quisque recentibus armat. 395 

Vadimus immixti Danais haud numine nostro, 

Multaque per caecam congressi proelia noctem 

Conserimus, multos Danaum demittimus Oreo. 

Diffugiunt alii ad naves, et litora cursu 

Fida petunt : pars ingentem formidine turpi 400 

Scandunt rursus equum et nota conduntur in alvo. 

Heu nihil invitis fas quemquam fidere divis ! 
Ecce trahebatur passis Priameia virgo 
Crinibus a templo Cassandra adytisque Minervae, 
Ad coelum tendens ardentia lumina frustra, 405 

Lumina, nam teneras arcebant vincula palmas. 
Non tulit hanc speciem furiata mente Coroebus, 
Et sese medium injecit periturus in agmen. 
Consequimur cuncti et densis incurrimus armis. 
Hie primum ex alto delubri culmine telis 410 

Nostrorum obruimur, oriturque miserrima caedes 
Armorum facie et Graiarum errore jubarum. 
Turn Danai gemitu atque ereptae virginis ira 
Undique collecti invadunt, acerrimus Ajax, 



146 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Et gemini Atridae, Dolopumque exercitus omnis ; 415 

Adversi rupto ceu quondam turbine venti 

Confligunt, Zephyrusque Notusque et laetus Eois 

Eurus equis ; stridunt silvae, saevitque tridenti 

Spumeus atque imo Nereus ciet aequora fundo. 

Illi etiam, si quos obscura nocte per umbram 420 

Fudimus insidiis totaque agitavimus urbe, 

Apparent ; primi clipeos mentitaque tela 

Agnoscunt, atque ora sono discordia signant. 

Ilicet obruimur numero ; primusque Coroebus 

Penelei dextra divae armipotentis ad aram 425 

Procumbit ; cadit et Rhipeus, justissimus unus 

Qui fuit in Teucris et servantissimus aequi ; 

Dis aliter visum ; pereunt Hypanisque Dymasque 

Confixi a sociis ; nee te tua plurima, Panthu, ' 

Labentem pietas nee Apollinis infula texit. 43° 

Iliaci cineres et flamma extrema meorum, 

Testor, in occasu vestro nee tela nee ullas 

Vitavisse vices Danaum, et, si fata fuissent, 

Ut caderem, meruisse manu. Divellimur inde, 

Iphitus et Pelias mecum, quorum Iphitus aevo 43s 

Jam gravior, Pelias et vulnere tardus Ulixi ; 

Protinus ad sedes Priami clamore vocati. 

Hie vero ingentem pugnam, ceu cetera nusquam 

Bella forent, nulli tota morerentur in urbe, 

Sic Martem indomitum, Danaosque ad tecta ruentes 440 

Cernimus obsessumque acta testudine limen. 

Haerent parietibus scalae, postesque sub ipsos 

Nituntur gradibus, clipeosque ad tela sinistris 

Protecti objiciunt, prensant fastigia dextris. 

Dardanidae contra turres ac tecta domorum 445 

Culmina convellunt ; his se, quando ultima cernunt, 

Extrema jam in morte parant defendere telis ; 

Auratasque trabes, veterum decora alta parentum, 

Devolvunt ; alii strictis mucronibus imas 

Obsedere fores ; has servant agmine denso. 450 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 1 47 

Instaurati animi, regis succurrere tectis, 
Auxilioque levare viros, vimque addere victis. 

Limen erat caecaeque fores et pervius usus 
Tectorum inter se Priami, postesque relicti 
A tergo, infelix qua se, dum regna manebant, 455 

Saepius Andromache ferre incomitata solebat 
Ad soceros, et avo puerum Astyanacta trahebat. 
'Evado ad summi fastigia culminis, unde 
Tela manu miseri jactabant irrita Teucri. 
Turrim in praecipiti stantem summisque sub astra 460 

Eductam tectis, unde omnis Troja videri 
Et Danaum solitae naves et Achaia c astra, 
Aggressi ferro circum, qua summa labantes 
Juncturas tabulata dabant, convellimus altis 
Sedibus impulimusque ; ea lapsa repente ruinam 465 

Cum sonitu trahit et Danaum super agmina late 
Incidit. Ast alii subeunt, nee saxa, nee ullum 
Telorum interea cessat genus. 

Vestibulum ante ipsum primoque in limine Pyrrhus 
Exsultat, telis et luce coruscus aena ; 470 

Qualis ubi in lucem coluber mala gramina pastus, 
Frigida sub terra tumidum quem bruma tegebat, 
Nunc, positis novus exuviis nitidusque juventa, 
Lubrica convolvit sublato pectore terga 
Arduus ad solem, et Unguis micat ore trisulcis. 475 

Una ingens Periphas et equorum agitator Achillis, 
Armiger Automedon, una omnis Scyria pubes 
Succedunt tecto, et flammas ad culmina jactant. 
Ipse inter primos correpta dura bipenni 
Limina perrumpit, postesque a cardine vellit 480 

Aeratos ; jam que excisa trabe firma cavavit 
Robora, et ingentem lato dedit ore fenestram. 
Apparet domus intus, et atria longa patescunt ; 
Apparent Priami et veterum penetralia regum, 
Armatosque vident stantes in limine primo. 485 

At domus interior gemitu miseroque tumultu 



148 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Miscetur, penitusque cavae plangoribus aedes 

Femineis ululant ; ferit aurea sidera clamor. 

Turn pavidae tectis matres ingentibus errant, 

Amplexaeque tenent postes atque oscula figunt. 490 

Instat vi patria Pyrrhus ; nee claustra, neque ipsi 

Custodes sufferre valent ; labat ariete crebro 

Janua, et emoti procumbunt cardine postes. 

Fit via vi ; rumpunt aditus, primosque trucidant 

Immissi Danai, et late loca milite complent. 495 

Non sic, aggeribus ruptis quum spumeus amnis 

Exiit oppositasque evicit gurgite moles, 

Fertur in arva furens cumulo, camposque per omnes 

Cum stabulis armenta trahit. Vidi ipse furentem 

Caede Neoptolemum geminosque in limine Atridas ; 500 

Vidi Hecubam centumque nurus, Priamumque per aras 

Sanguine foedantem, quos ipse sacraverat, ignes. 

Quinquaginta illi thalami, spes tanta nepotum, 

Barbarico postes auro spoliisque superbi, 

Procubuere ; tenent Danai, qua deficit ignis. 505 

Forsitan et, Priami fuerint quae fata, requiras. 
Urbis uti captae casum convulsaque vidit 
Limina tectorum et medium in penetralibus hostem, 
Arma diu senior desueta trementibus aevo 
Circumdat nequidquam humeris, et inutile ferrum 51° 

Cingitur, ac densos fertur moriturus in hostes. 
Aedibus in mediis nudoque sub aetheris axe 
Ingens ara fuit juxtaque veterrima laurus, 
Incumbens arae atque umbra complexa Penates. 
Hie Hecuba et natae nequidquam altaria circum, 51s 

Praecipites atra ceu tempestate columbae, 
Condensae et divum amplexae simulacra sedebant. 
Ipsum autem sumptis Priamum juvenalibus armis 
Ut vidit, Quae mens tarn dira, miserrime conjux, 
Impulit his cingi telis ? aut quo ruis ? inquit. 520 

Non tali auxilio nee defensoribus istis 
Tempus eget ; non, si ipse meus nunc afforet Hector. 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 1 49 

Hue tandem concede ; haec ara tuebitur omnes, 

Aut moriere simul. Sic ore effata recepit 

Ad sese et sacra longaevum in sede locavit. 525 

Ecce autem elapsus Pyrrhi de caede Polites, 
Unus natorum Priami, per tela, per hostes 
Porticibus longis fugit, et vacua atria lustrat 
Saucius. Ilium ardens infesto vulnere Pyrrhus 
Insequitur, jam jamque manu tenet et premit hasta. 530 
Ut tandem ante oculos evasit et ora parentum, 
Concidit, ac multo vitam cum sanguine fudit. 
Hie Priamus, quamquam in media jam morte tenetur, 
Non tamen abstinuit, nee voci iraeque pepercit : 
At tibi pro scelere, exclamat, pro talibus ausis, 535 

Di, si qua est coelo pietas, quae talia curet, 
Persolvant grates dignas et praemia reddant 
Debita, qui nati coram me cernere letum 
Fecisti et patrios foedasti funere vultus. 
At non ille, satum quo te mentiris, Achilles 54 o 

Talis in hoste fuit Priamo ; sed jura fldemque 
Supplicis erubuit, corpusque exsangue sepulchro 
Reddidit Hectoreum, meque in mea regna remisit. 
Sic fatus senior, telumque imbelle sine ictu 
Conjecit, rauco quod protinus aere repulsum S45 

Et summo clipei nequidquam umbone pependit. 
Cui Pyrrhus : Referes ergo haec et nuntius ibis 
Pelidae genitori ; illi mea tristia facta 
Degeneremque Neoptolemum narrare memento. 
Nunc morere. Hoc dicens altaria ad ipsa trementem 550 
Traxit et in multo lapsantem sanguine nati, 
Implicuitque comam laeva, dextraque coruscum 
Extulit ac lateri capulo tenus abdidit ensem. 
Haec finis Priami fatorum ; hie exitus ilium 
Sorte tulit, Trojam incensam et prolapsa videntem 555 

Pergama, tot quondam populis terrisque superbum 
Regnatorem Asiae. Jacet ingens litore truncus, 
Avulsumque humeris caput, et sine nomine corpus. 



150 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

At me turn primum saevus circumstetit horror. 
Obstupui ; subiit cari genitoris imago, 560 

Ut regem aequaevum crudeli vulnere vidi 
Vitam exhalantem ; subiit deserta Creusa, 
Et direpta domus, et parvi casus Iuli. 
Respicio, et, quae sit me circum copia, lustro. 
Deseruere omnes defessi, et corpora saltu 565 

Ad terram misere aut ignibus aegra dedere. 

[Jamque adeo super unus eram, quum limina Vestae 
Servantem et tacitam secreta in sede latentem 
Tyndarida adspicio : dant clara incendia lucem 
Erranti passim que oculos per cuncta ferenti. 570 

Ilia sibi infestos eversa ob Pergama Teucros 
Et poenas Danaum et deserti conjugis iras 
Praemetuens, Trojae et patriae communis Erinnys, 
Abdiderat sese atque aris invisa sedebat. 
Exarsere ignes animo ; subit ira cadentem 575 

Ulcisci patriam et sceleratas sumere poenas. 
Scilicet haec Spartam incolumis patriasque Mycenas 
Adspiciet ? partoque ibit regina triumpho, 
Conjugiumque, domumque, patres, natosque videbit, 
Iliadum turba et Phrygiis comitata ministris ? 580 

Occident ferro Priamus? Troja arserit igni? 
Dardanium toties sudarit sanguine litus ? 
Non ita. Namque etsi nullum memorabile nomen 
Feminea in poena est nee habet victoria laudem, 
Exstinxisse nefas tamen et sumpsisse merentes 585 

Laudabor poenas, animumque explesse juvabit 
Ultricis flammae, et cineres satiasse meorum. 
Talia jactabam, et furiata mente ferebar,] 
Quum mihi se, non ante oculis tam clara, videndam 
Obtulit et pura per nOctem in luce refulsit 590 

Alma parens, confessa deam, qualisque videri 
Coelicolis et quanta solet, dextraque prehensum 
Continuit, roseoque haec insuper addidit ore : 
Nate, quis indomitas tantus dolor excitat iras ? 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 151 

Quid furis ? aut quonam nostri tibi cura recessit ? 595 

Non prius adspicies, ubi fessum aetate parentem 

Liqueris Anchisen ? superet conjuxne Creusa, 

Ascaniusque puer ? quos omnis undique Graiae 

Circumerrant acies, et, ni mea cura resistat, 

Jam flammae tulerint inimicus et hauserit ensis. 600 

Non tibi Tyndaridis fades invisa Lacaenae 

Culpatusve Paris, divum inclementia, divum, 

Has evertit opes sternitque a culmine Trojam. 

Adspice — namque omnem, quae nunc obducta tuenti 

Mortales hebetat visus tibi et humida circum 60s 

Caligat, nubem eripiam ; tu ne qua parentis 

Jussa time, neu praeceptis parere recusa — 

Hie, ubi disjectas moles avulsaque saxis 

Saxa vides mixtoque undantem pulvere fumum, 

Neptunus muros magnoque emota tridenti 610 

Fundamenta quatit totamque a sedibus urbem 

Emit. Hie Juno Scaeas saevissima portas 

Prima tenet, sociumque furens a navibus agmen 

Ferro accincta vocat. 

Jam summas arces Tritonia, respice, Pallas 615 

Insedit, nimbo effulgens et Gorgone saeva. 

Ipse Pater Danais animos viresque secundas 

Sufficit, ipse deos in Dardana suscitat arma. 

Eripe, nate, fugam, finemque impone labori. 

Nusquam abero, et tutum patrio te limine sistam. 620 

Dixerat, et spissis noctis se condidit umbris. 

Apparent dirae facies inimicaque Trojae 

Numina magna deum. 

Turn vero omne mihi visum considere in ignes 
Ilium et ex imo verti Neptunia Troja j 625 

Ac veluti summis antiquam in montibus ornum 
Quum ferro accisam crebrisque bipennibus instant 
Eruere agricolae certatim ; ilia usque minatur 
Et tremefacta comam concusso vertice nutat, 
Vulneribus donee paulatim evicta supremum 630 



152 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Congemuit traxitque jugis avulsa ruinam. 
Descendo, ac ducente deo flammam inter et hostes 
Expedior ; dant tela locum, flammaeque recedunt. 

Atque ubi jam patriae perventum ad limina sedis 
Antiquasque domos, genitor, quem tollere in altos 6 35 

Optabam primum montes primumque petebam, 
Abnegat excisa vitam producere Troja 
Exsiliumque pati. Vos o, quibus integer aevi 
Sanguis, ait, solidaeque suo stant robore vires, 
Vos agitate fugam. 640 

Me si coelicolae voluissent ducere vitam, 
Has mihi servassent sedes. Satis una superque 
Vidimus exscidia et captae superavimus urbi. 
Sic o, sic positum affati discedite corpus. 
Ipse manu mortem inveniam ; miserebitur hostis 645 

Exuviasque petet ; facilis jactura sepulchri. 
Jam pridem invisus divis et inutilis annos 
Demoror, ex quo me divum pater atque hominum rex 
Fulminis afflavit ventis et contigit igni. 

Talia perstabat memorans, fixusque manebat. 650 

Nos contra effusi lacrimis conjuxque Creusa 
Ascaniusque omnisque domus, ne vertere secum 
Cuncta pater fatoque urguenti incumbere vellet. 
Abnegat, inceptoque et sedibus haeret in isdem. 
Rursus in arma feror, mortemque miserrimus opto, 655 

Nam quod consilium aut quae jam fortuna dabatur ? 
Mene efferre pedem, genitor, te posse relicto 
Sperasti, tantumque nefas patrio excidit ore ? 
Si nihil ex tanta Superis placet urbe relinqui, 
Et sedet hoc animo, perituraeque addere Trojae 660 

Teque tuosque juvat, patet isti janua leto, 
J am que aderit multo Priami de sanguine Pyrrhus, 
Natum ante ora patris, patrem qui obtruncat ad aras. 
Hoc erat, alma parens, quod me per tela, per ignes 
Eripis, ut mediis hostem in penetralibus, utque 665 

Ascanium patremque meum juxtaque Creusam 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 1 53 

Alterum in alterius mactatos sanguine cernam ? 

Arma, viri, ferte arma ; vocat lux ultima victos. 

Reddite me Danais ; sinite instaurata revisam 

Proelia. Numquam omnes hodie moriemur inulti. 6 7 o 

Hinc ferro accingor rursus clipeoque sinistram 
Insertabam aptans meque extra tecta ferebam. 
Ecce autem complexa pedes in limine conjux 
Haerebat, parvumque patri tendebat Iulum : 
Si periturus abis, et nos rape in omnia tecum ; 6 75 

Sin aliquam expertus sumptis spem ponis in armis, 
Hanc primum tutare domum. Cui parvus lulus, 
Cui pater et conjux quondam tua dicta relinquor ? 

Talia vociferans gemitu tectum omne replebat, 
Quum subitum dictuque oritur mirabile monstrum. 680 

Namque manus inter maestorumque ora parentum 
Ecce levis summo de vertice visus Iuli 
Fundere lumen apex, tactuque innoxia molles 
Lambere flamma comas et circum tempora pasci. 
Nos pavidi trepidare metu, crinemque flagrantem 685 

Excutere et sanctos restinguere fontibus ignes. 
At pater Anchises oculos ad sidera laetus 
Extulit, et coelo palmas cum voce tetendit : 
Juppiter omnipotens, precibus si flecteris ullis, 
Adspice nos ; hoc tantum ; et, si pietate meremur, 690 

Da deinde auxilium, pater, atque haec omina firma. 
Vix ea fatus erat senior, subitoque fragore 
Intonuit laevum, et de coelo lapsa per umbras 
Stella facem ducens multa cum luce cucurrit. 
Illam, summa super labentem culmina tecti, 6 95 

Cernimus Idaea claram se condere silva 
Signantemque vias j turn longo limite sulcus 
Dat lucem, et late circum loca sulfure fumant. 
Hie vero victus genitor se tollit ad auras, 
Affaturque deos et sanctum sidus adorat : 700 

Jam jam nulla mora est; sequor, et, qua ducitis, adsum. 
Di patrii, servate domum, servate nepotem. 



154 p - VIRGILII MARONIS 

Vestrum hoc augurium, vestroque in numine Troja est. 
Cedo equidem, nee, nate, tibi comes ire recuso. 

Dixerat ille ; et jam per moenia clarior ignis 705 

Auditur, propiusque aestus incendia volvunt. 
Ergo age, care pater, cervici imponere nostrae ; 
Ipse subibo humeris, nee me labor iste gravabit ; 
Quo res cumque cadent, unum et commune periclum, 
Una salus ambobus erit. Mihi parvus lulus 71° 

Sit comes, et longe servet vestigia conjux. 
Vos, famuli, quae dicam, animis advertite vestris. 
Est urbe egressis tumulus templumque vetustum 
Desertae Cereris, juxtaque antiqua cupressus 
Religione patrum multos servata per annos. 715 

Hanc ex diverso sedem veniemus in unam. 
Tu, genitor, cape sacra manu patriosque Penates ; 
Me, bello e tanto digressum et caede recenti, 
Attrectare nefas, donee me numine vivo 
Abluero. 720 

Haec fatus, latos humeros subjectaque colla 
Veste super fulvique insternor pelle leonis, 
Succedoque oneri ; dextrae se parvus lulus 
Implicuit sequiturque patrem non passibus aequis ; 
Pone subit conjux. Ferimur per opaca locorum ; 725 

Et me, quern dudum non ulla injecta movebant 
Tela neque adverso glomerati ex agmine Graii, 
Nunc omnes terrent aurae, sonus excitat omnis 
Suspensum et pariter comitique onerique timentem. 

Jamque propinquabam portis, omnemque videbar 730 
Evasisse viam, subito cum creber ad aures 
Visus adesse pedum sorritus, genitorque per umbram 
Prospiciens, Nate, exclamat, fuge, nate ; propinquant. 
Ardentes clipeos atque aera micantia cerno. 
Hie mihi nescio quod trepido male numen amicum 735 

Confusam eripuit mentem. Namque avia cursu 
Dum sequor et nota excedo regione viarum, 
Heu ! misero conjux fatone erepta Creusa 



AENEIDOS LIB. II. 155 

Substitit, erravitne via, seu lassa resedit, 

Incertum ; nee post oculis est reddita nostris. 740 

Nee prius amissam respexi animumque reflexi, 

Quam tumulum antiquae Cereris sedemque sacratam 

Venimus ; hie demum collectis omnibus una 

Defuit, et comites natumque virumque fefellit 

Quern non incusavi amens hominumque deorumque, 745 

Aut quid in eversa vidi crudelius urbe ? 

Ascanium Anchisenque patrem Teucrosque Penates 

Commendo sociis et curva valle recondo ; 

Ipse urbem repeto et cingor fulgentibus armis. 

Stat casus renovare omnes, omnemque reverti 750 

Per Trojam, et rursus caput objectare periclis. 

Principio muros obscuraque limina portae, 
Qua gressum extuleram, repeto, et vestigia retro 
Observata sequor per noctem et lumine lustro. 
Horror ubique animos, simul ipsa silentia terrent. 755 

Inde domum, si forte pedem, si forte tulisset, 
Me refero. Irruerant Danai, et tectum omne tenebant. 
Ilicet ignis edax summa ad fastigia vento 
Volvitur ; exsuperant flammae, furit aestus ad auras. 
Procedo et Priami sedes arcemque reviso. 760 

Et jam porticibus vacuis Junonis asylo 
Custodes lecti Phoenix et dims Ulixes 
Praedam adservabant. Hue undique Troia gaza 
Incensis erepta adytis, mensaeque deorum, 
Crateresque auro solidi, captivaque vestis 765 

Congeritur. Pueri et pavidae longo ordine matres 
Stant circum. 

Ausus quin etiam voces jactare per umbram 
Implevi clamore vias, maestusque Creusam 
Nequidquam ingeminans iterumque iterumque vocavi. 770 
Quaerenti et tectis urbis sine fine furenti 
Infelix simulacrum atque ipsius umbra Creusae 
Visa mihi ante oculos et nota major imago. 
Obstupui, steteruntque comae et vox faucibus haesit. 



156 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Turn sic affari et curas his demere dictis : 775 

Quid tantum insano juvat indulgere dolori, 

O dulcis conjux ? non haec sine numine divum 

Eveniunt; nee te hinc comitem asportare Creusam 

Fas aut ille sinit superi regnator Olympi. 

Longa tibi exsilia, et vastum maris aequor arandum, 7 3o 

Et terram Hesperiam venies, ubi Lydius arva 

Inter opima virum leni fluit agmine Thybris : 

Illic res laetae regnumque et regia conjux 

Parta tibi. Lacrimas dilectae pelle Creusae : 

Non ego Myrmidonum sedes Dolopumve superbas 7S5 

Adspiciam, aut Graiis servitum matribus ibo, 

Dardanis, et divae Veneris nurus ; 

Sed me magna deum genetrix his detinet oris. 

J am que vale, et nati serva communis amorem. 

Haec ubi dicta dedit, lacrimantem et multa volentem 79° 

Dicere deseruit, tenuisque recessit in auras. 

Ter conatus ibi collo dare brachia circum : 

Ter frustra comprensa manus efFugit imago, 

Par levibus ventis volucrique simillima somno. 

Sic demum socios consumpta nocte reviso. 795 

Atque hie ingentem comitum affluxisse novorum 
Invenio admirans numerum, matresque, virosque, 
Collectam exsilio pubem, miserabile vulgus. 
Undique convenere, animis opibusque parati, 
In quascumque velim pelago deducere terras. 800 

J am que jugis summae surgebat Lucifer Idae 
Ducebatque diem, Danaique obsessa tenebant 
Limina portarum, nee spes opis ulla dabatur ; 
Cessi et sublato montes genitore petivi. 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 1 57 



LIBER III. 



Postquam res Asiae Priamique evertere gentem 
Immeritam visum Superis, ceciditque superbum 
Ilium et omnis humo fumat Neptunia Troja, 
Diversa exsilia et desertas quaerere terras 
Auguriis agimur divum, classemque sub ipsa 
Antandro et Phrygiae molimur montibus Idae, 
Incerti, quo fata ferant, ubi sistere detur, 
Contrahimusque viros. Vix prima inceperat aestas, 
Et pater Anchises dare fatis vela jubebat ; 
Litora quum patriae lacrimans portusque relinquo 
Et campos, ubi Troja fuit. Feror exsul in altum 
Cum sociis natoque Penatibus et magnis dis. 

Terra procul vastis colitur Mavortia campis, 
Thraces arant, acri quondam regnata Lycurgo, 
Hospitium antiquum Trojae sociique Penates, 
Dum fortuna fuit. Feror hue, et litore curvo 
Moenia prima loco, fatis ingressus iniquis, 
Aeneadasque meo nomen de nomine fingo. 

Sacra Dionaeae matri divisque ferebam 
Auspicibus coeptorum operum, superoque nitentem 
Coelicolum regi mactabam in litore taurum. 
Forte fuit juxta tumulus, quo cornea summo 
Virgulta et densis hastilibus horrida myrtus. 
Accessi, viridemque ab humo convellere silvam 
Conatus, ramis tegerem ut frondqntibus aras, 
Horrendum et dictu video mirabile monstrum. 
Nam, quae prima solo ruptis radicibus arbos 
Vellitur, huic atro liquuntur sanguine guttae 
Et terram tabo maculant. Mihi frigidus horror 
Membra quatit, gelidusque coit formidine sanguis. 
Rursus et alterius lentum convellere vimen 
Insequor et caussas penitus tentare latentes : 
Ater et alterius sequitur de cortice sanguis. 



158 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Multa movens animo Nymphas venerabar agrestes 

Gradivumque patrem, Geticis qui praesidet arvis, 35 

Rite secundarent visus omenque levarent. 

Tertia sed postquam majore hastilia nisu 

Aggredior genibusque adversae obluctor arenae — 

Eloquar, an sileam ? — gemitus lacrimabilis imo 

Auditur tumulo, et vox reddita fertur ad aures : 40 

Quid miserum, Aenea, laceras ? jam parce sepulto ; 

Parce pias scelerare manus. Non me tibi Troja 

Externum tulit, aut cruor hie de stipite manat. 

Heu ! fuge crudeles terras, fuge litus avarum. 

Nam Polydorus ego. Hie confixum ferrea texit 45 

Telorum seges et jaculis increvit acutis. 

Turn vero ancipiti mentem formidine pressus 
Obstupui, steteruntque comae et vox faucibus haesit. 
Hunc Polydorum auri quondam cum pondere magno 
Infelix Priamus furtim mandarat alendum 50 

Threicio regi, quum jam diffideret armis 
Dardaniae cingique urbem obsidione videret. 
Ille, ut opes fractae Teucrum, et Fortuna recessit, 
Res Agamemnonias victriciaque arma secutus, 
Fas omne abrumpit ; Polydorum obtruncat, et auro 55 

Vi potitur. Quid non mortalia pectora cogis, 
Auri sacra fames ? Postquam pavor ossa reliquit, 
Delectos populi ad proceres primumque parentem 
Monstra deum refero, et, quae sit sententia, posco. 
Omnibus idem animus, scelerata excedere terra, 60 

Linqui pollutum hospitium, et dare classibus austros. 
Ergo instauramus Polydoro funus : et ingens 
Aggeritur tumulo tellus ; stant Manibus arae, 
Caeruleis maestae vittis atraque cupresso, 
Et circum Iliades crinem de more solutae ; 65 

Inferimus tepido spumantia cymbia lacte 
Sanguinis et sacri pateras, animamque sepulchro 
Condimus, et magna supremum voce ciemus. 

Inde, ubi prima fides pelago, placataque venti 
Dant maria et lenis crepitans vocat auster in altum, 70 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 1 59 

Deducunt socii naves et litora complent. 

Provehimur portu, terraeque urbesque recedunt. 

Sacra mari colitur medio gratissima tellus 

Nereidum matri et Neptuno Aegaeo, 

Quam pius Arcitenens oras et litora circum 75 

Errantem Mycono e celsa Gyaroque revinxit, 

Immotamque coli dedit et contemnere ventos. 

Hue feror ; haec fessos tuto placidissima portu 

Accipit. Egressi veneramur Apollinis urbem. 

Rex Anius, rex idem hominum Phoebique sacerdos, So 

Vittis et sacra redimitus tempora lauro, 

Occurrit ; veterem Anchisen agnoscit amicum. 

Jungimus hospitio dextras, et tecta subimus. 

Templa dei saxo venerabar structa vetusto : 
Da propriam, Thymbraee, domum ; da moenia fessis s 5 
Et genus et mansuram urbem ; serva altera Trojae 
Pergama, reliquias Danaum atque immitis Achilli. 
Quern sequimur? quove ire jubes? ubi ponere sedes ? 
Da, pater, augurium, atque animis illabere nostris. 

Vix ea fatus eram : tremere omnia visa repente, 90 

Liminaque laurusque dei, totusque moveri 
Mons circum, et mugire adytis cortina reclusis. 
Submissi petimus terram, et vox fertur ad aures : 
Dardanidae duri, quae vos a stirpe parentum 
Prima tulit tellus, eadem vos ubere laeto 95 

Accipiet reduces. Antiquam exquirite matrem. 
Hie domus Aeneae cunctis dominabitur oris, 
Et nati natorum, et qui nascentur ab illis. 
Haec Phoebus ; mixtoque ingens exorta tumultu 
Laetitia, et cuncti, quae sint ea moenia, quaerunt, 100 

Quo Phoebus vocet errantes jubeatque reverti ? 
Turn genitor, veterum volvens monumenta virorum, 
Audite, o proceres, ait, et spes discite vestras : 
Creta Jovis magni medio jacet insula ponto ; 
Mons Idaeus ubi, et gentis cunabula nostrae. 105 

Centum urbes habitant magnas, uberrima regna ; 



l6o P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Maximus unde pater, si rite audita recordor, 

Teucrus Rhoeteas primum est advectus ad oras, 

Optavitque locum regno. Nondum Ilium et arces 

Pergameae steterant ; habitabant vallibus imis. no 

Hinc mater cultrix Cybelae Corybantiaque aera 

Idaeumque nemus ; hinc fida silentia sacris, 

Et juncti currum dominae subiere leones. 

Ergo agite, et, divum ducunt qua jussa, sequamur ; 

Placemus ventos et Gnosia regna petamus. 115 

Nee longo distant cursu ; modo Juppiter adsit, 

Tertia lux classem Cretaeis sistet in oris. 

Sic fatus, meritos aris mactavit honores, 

Taurum Neptuno, taurum tibi, pulcher Apollo, 

Nigram Hiemi pecudem, Zephyris felicibus albam. 120 

Fama volat pulsum regnis cessisse paternis 
Idomenea ducem, desertaque litora Cretae, 
Hoste vacare domos, sedesque adstare relictas. 
Linquimus Ortygiae portus, pelagoque volamus, 
Bacchatamque jugis Naxon viridemque Donysam, 125 

Olearon, niveamque Paron sparsasque per aequor 
Cycladas et crebris legimus freta consita terris. 
Nauticus exoritur vario certamine clamor ; 
Hortantur socii : Cretam proavosque petamus. 
Prosequitur surgens a puppi ventus euntes, 130 

Et tandem antiquis Curetum allabimur oris. 
Ergo avidus muros optatae molior urbis, 
Pergameamque voco, et laetam cognomine gentem 
Hortor amare focos arcemque attollere tectis. 
Jamque fere sicco subductae litore puppes ; 135 

Connubiis arvisque novis operata juventus ; 
Jura domosque dabam : subito quum tabida membris, 
Corrupto coeli tractu, miserandaque venit 
Arboribusque satisque lues et letifer annus. 
Linquebant dulces animas, aut aegra trahebant 140 

Corpora ; turn steriles exurere Sirius agros ; 
Arebant herbae, et victum seges aegra negabat. 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. l6l 

Rursus ad oraclum Ortygiae Phoebumque remenso 
Hortatur pater ire mari, veniamque precari : 
Quam fessis finem rebus ferat ; unde laborum i 45 

Ten tare auxilium jubeat ; quo vertere cursus. 

Nox erat, et terris animalia somnus habebat : 
Effigies sacrae divum Phrygiique Penates, 
Quos mecum a Troja mediisque ex ignibus urbis 
Extuleram, visi ante oculos adstare jacentis 150 

In somnis, multo manifesti lumine, qua se 
Plena per insertas fundebat luna fenestras ; 
Turn sic affari et curas his demere dictis : 
Quod tibi delato Ortygiam dicturus Apollo est, 
Hie canit, et tua nos en ultro ad limina mittit. 15s 

Nos te, Dardania incensa, tuaque arma secuti, 
Nos tumidum sub te permensi classibus aequor, 
Idem venturos tollemus in astra nepotes, 
Imperiumque urbi dabimus. Tu moenia magnis 
Magna para, longumque fugae ne linque laborem. 160 

Mutandae sedes. Non haec tibi litora suasit 
Delius aut Cretae jussit considere Apollo. 
Est locus, Hesperiam Graii cognomine dicunt, 
Terra antiqua, potens armis atque ubere glaebae ; 
Oenotri coluere viri ; nunc fama minores 165 

Italiam dixisse ducis de nomine gentem : 
Hae nobis propriae sedes ; hinc Dardanus ortus, 
Iasius'que pater, genus a quo principe nostrum. 
Surge age, et haec laetus longaevo dicta parenti 
Haud dubitanda refer : Corythum terrasque requirat 170 
Ausonias. Dictaea negat tibi Juppiter arva. 
Talibus attonitus visis et voce deorum — 
Nee sopor illud erat, sed coram agnoscere vultus 
Velatasque comas praesentiaque ora videbar ; 
Turn gelidus toto manabat corpore sudor — i 75 

Corripio e stratis corpus, tendoque supinas 
Ad coelum cum voce manus, et munera libo 
Intemerata focis. Perfecto laetus honore 



1 62 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Anchisen facio certum, remque ordine pando. 

Agnovit prolem ambiguam geminosque parentes, 180 

Seque novo veterum deceptum errore locorum. 

Turn memorat : Nate, Iliads exercite fatis, 

Sola mihi tales casus Cassandra canebat. 

Nunc repeto haec generi portendere debita nostro, 

Et saepe Hesperiam, saepe Itala regna vocare. 185 

Sed quis ad Hesperiae venturos litora Teucros 

Crederet ? aut quern turn vates Cassandra moveret ? 

Cedamus Phoebo, et moniti meliora sequamur. 

Sic ait ; et cuncti dicto paremus ovantes. 

Hanc quoque deserimus sedem, paucisque relictis 190 

Vela damus, vastumque cava trabe currimus aequor. 

Postquam altum tenuere rates, nee jam amplius ullae 
Apparent terrae, coelum undique et undique pontus, 
Turn mihi caeruleus supra caput adstitit imber, 
Noctem hiememque ferens, et inhorruit unda tenebris. 195 
Continuo venti volvunt mare magnaque surgunt 
Aequora ■ dispersi jactamur gurgite vasto ; 
Involvere diem nimbi, et nox humida coelum 
Abstulit ; ingeminant abruptis nubibus ignes. 
Excutimur cursu, et caecis erramus in undis. 200 

Ipse diem noctemque negat discern ere coelo, 
Nee meminisse viae media Palinurus in unda. 
Tres adeo incertos caeca caligine soles 
Erramus pelago, totidem sine sidere noctes. 
Quarto terra die primum se attollere tandem 205 

Visa, aperire procul montes, ac volvere fumum. 
Vela cadunt, remis insurgimus ; haud mora, nautae 
Adnixi torquent spumas et caerula verrunt. 

Servatum ex undis Strophadum me litora primum 
Accipiunt ; Strophades Graio stant nomine dictae, 210 

Insulae Ionio in magno, quas dira Celaeno 
Harpyiaeque colunt aliae, Phineia postquam 
Clausa domus, mensasque metu liquere priores. 
Tristius haud illis monstrum, nee saevior ulla 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 1 63 

Pestis et ira deum Stygiis sese extulit undis. 215 

Virginei volucrum vultus, foedissima ventris 

Proluvies, uncaeque manus, et pallida semper 

Ora fame. 

Hue ubi delati portus intravimus, ecce 

Laeta bourn passim campis armenta videmus 220 

Caprigenumque pecus nullo custode per herbas. 

Irruimus ferro, et divos ipsumque vocamus 

In partem praedamque Jovem ; turn litore curvo 

Exstruimusque toros dapibusque epulamur opimis. 

At subitae horrifico lapsu de montibus adsunt 225 

Harpyiae et magnis quatiunt clangoribus alas, 

Diripiuntque dapes contactuque omnia foedant 

Immundo ; turn vox tetrum dira inter odorem. 

Rursum in secessu longo sub rupe cavata, 

Arboribus clausi circum atque horrentibus umbris, 230 

Instruimus mensas arisque reponimus ignem : 

Rursum ex diverso coeli caecisque latebris 

Turba sonans praedam pedibus circumvolat uncis, 

Polluit ore dapes. Sociis tunc, arma capessant, 

Edico, et dira bellum cum gente gerendum. 235 

Haud secus ac jussi faciunt, tectosque per herbam 

Disponunt enses et scuta latentia condunt. 

Ergo ubi delapsae sonitum per curva dedere 

Litora, dat signum specula Misenus ab alta 

Aere cavo. Invadunt socii, et nova proelia tentant, 240 

Obscenas pelagi ferro foedare volucres. 

Sed neque vim plumis ullam nee vulnera tergo 

Accipiunt, celerique fuga sub sidera lapsae 

Semiesam praedam et vestigia foeda relinquunt. 

Una in praecelsa consedit rupe Celaeno, 245 

Infelix vates, rumpitque hanc pectore vocem : 

Bellum etiam pro caede bourn stratisque juvencis, 

Laomedontiadae, bellumne inferre paratis 

Et patrio Harpyias insontes pellere regno ? 

Accipite ergo animis atque haec mea figite dicta. 250 



164 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Quae Phoebo pater omnipotens, mihi Phoebus Apollo 

Praedixit, vobis Furiarum ego maxima pando. 

Italiam cursu petitis, ventisque vocatis 

Ibitis Italiam, portusque intrare licebit ; 

Sed non ante datam cingetis moenibus urbem, 255 

Quam vos dira fames nostraeque injuria caedis 

Ambesas subigat malis absumere mensas. 

Dixit, et in silvam pennis ablata refugit. 

At sociis subita gelidus formidine sanguis 

Deriguit ; cecidere animi ; nee jam amplius armis, 260 

Sed votis precibusque jubent exposcere pacem, 

Sive deae, seu sint dirae obscenaeque volucres. 

Et pater Anchises passis de litore palmis 

Numina magna vocat, meritosque indicit honores : 

Di, prohibete minas ; di, talem avertite casum, 265 

Et placidi servate pios ! Turn litore funem 

Deripere, excussosque jubet laxare rudentes. 

Tendunt vela Noti ; fugimus spumantibus undis, 

Qua cursum ventusque gubernatorque vocabat. 

Jam medio apparet fluctu nemorosa Zacynthos 270 

Dulichiumque Sameque et Neritos ardua saxis. 

Effugimus scopulos Ithacae, Laertia regna, 

Et terram altricem saevi exsecramur Ulixi. 

Mox et Leucatae nimbosa cacumina montis 

Et formidatus nautis aperitur Apollo. 275 

Hunc petimus fessi et parvae succedimus urbi ; 

Ancora de prora jacitur, stant litore puppes. 

Ergo insperata tandem tellure potiti 
Lustramurque Jovi votisque incendimus aras, 
Actiaque Iliacis celebramus litora ludis. 280 

Exercent patrias oleo labente palaestras 
Nudati socii ; juvat evasisse tot urbes 
Argolicas mediosque fugam tenuisse per hostes. 
Interea magnum sol circumvolvitur annum, 
Et glacialis hiems aquilonibus asperat undas. 285 

Aere cavo clipeum, magni gestamen Abantis, 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 1 65 

Postibus adversis figo, et rem carmine signo : 
Aeneas haec de danais victoribus arma. 
Linquere turn portus jubeo et considere transtris. 
Certatim socii feriunt mare et aequora verrunt. 290 

Protinus aerias Phaeacum abscondimus arces, 
Litoraque Epiri legimus portuque subimus 
Chaonio et celsam Buthroti accedimus urbem. 

Hie incredibilis rerum fama occupat aures 
Priamiden Helenum Graias regnare per urbes, 295 

Conjugio Aeacidae Pyrrhi sceptrisque potitum, 
Et patrio Andromachen iterum cessisse marito. 
Obstupui, miroque incensum pectus amore, 
Compellare virum et casus cognoscere tantos. 
Progredior portu, classis et litora linquens, 300 

Sollemnes quum forte dapes et tristia dona 
Ante urbem in luco falsi Simoentis ad undam 
Libabat cineri Andromache Manesque vocabat 
Hectoreum ad tumulum, viridi quern caespite inanem 
Et geminas, caussam lacrimis, sacraverat aras. 305 

Ut me conspexit venientem et Troia circum 
Arma amens vidit, magnis exterrita monstris 
Deriguit visu in medio, calor ossa reliquit ; 
Labitur, et longo vix tandem tempore fatur : 
Verane te fades, verus mihi nuntius affers, 310 

Nate dea ? vivisne ? aut, si lux alma recessit, 
Hector ubi est ? Dixit, lacrimasque effudit et omnem 
Implevit clamore locum. Vix pauca furenti 
Subjicio et raris turbatus vocibus hisco : 
Vivo equidem, vitamque extrema per omnia duco ; 315 

Ne dubita, nam vera vides. 
Heu ! quis te casus dejectam conjuge tanto 
Excipit ? aut quae digna satis fortuna revisit 
Hectoris Andromachen ? Pyrrhin' connubia servas ? 
Dejecit vultum et demissa voce locuta est : 320 

O felix una ante alias Priameia virgo, 
Hostilem ad tumulum Trojae sub moenibus altis 



1 66 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Jussa mori, quae sortitus non pertulit ullos, 

Nee victoris heri tetigit captiva cubile ! 

Nos, patria incensa diversa per aequora vectae, 325 

Stirpis Achilleae fastus juvenemque superburn, 

Servitio enixae, tulimus ; qui deinde, secutus 

Ledaeam Hermionen Lacedaemoniosque hymenaeos, 

Me famulo famulamque Heleno transmisit habendam. 

Ast ilium, ereptae magno inflammatus amore 330 

Conjugis et scelerum Furiis agitatus, Orestes 

Excipit incautum patriasque obtruncat ad aras. 

Morte Neoptolemi regnorum reddita cessit 

Pars Heleno, qui Chaonios cognomine campos 

Chaoniamque omnem Trojano a Chaone dixit, 335 

Pergamaque Iliacamque jugis hanc addidit arcem. 

Sed tibi qui cursum venti, quae fata dedere ? 

Aut quisnam ignarum nostris deus appulit oris ? 

Quid puer Ascanius ? superatne et vescitur aura, 

Quem tibi jam Troja — 340 

Ecqua tamen puero est amissae cura parentis ? 

Ecquid in antiquam virtutem animosque viriles 

Et pater Aeneas et avunculus excitat Hector ? 

Talia fundebat lacrimans longosque ciebat 

Incassum fletus, quum sese a moenibus heros 345 

Priamides multis Helenus comitantibus affert, 

Agnoscitque suos, laetusque ad limina ducit, 

Et multum lacrimas verba inter singula fundit. 

Procedo, et parvam Trojam simulataque magnis 

Pergama et arentem Xanthi cognomine rivum 350 

Agnosco, Scaeaeque amplector limina portae. 

Nee non et Teucri socia simul urbe fruuntur. 

Illos porticibus rex accipiebat in amplis ; 

Aulai medio libabant pocula Bacchi, 

Impositis auro dapibus, paterasque tenebant. 355 

Jamque dies alterque dies processit, et aurae 
Vela vocant tumidoque inflatur carbasus austro. 
His vatem aggredior dictis ac talia quaeso : 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 167 

Trojugena, interpres divum, qui numina Phoebi, 

Qui tripodas, Clarii laurus, qui sidera sentis 360 

Et volucrum linguas et praepetis omina pennae, 

Fare age — nam que omnem cursum mihi prospera dixit 

Religio, et cuncti suaserunt numine divi 

Italiam petere et terras tentare repostas ; 

Sola novum dictuque nefas Harpyia Celaeno 365 

Prodigium canit, et tristes denuntiat iras, 

Obscenamque famem — quae prima pericula vito ? 

Quidve sequens tantos possim superare labores ? 

Hie Helenus caesis primum de more juvencis 

Exorat pacem divum, vittasque resolvit 370 

Sacrati capitis, meque ad tua limina, Phoebe, 

Ipse manu multo suspensum numine ducit, 

Atque haec deinde canit divino ex ore sacerdos : 

Nate dea, — nam te majoribus ire per altum 
Auspiciis manifesta fides : sic fata deum rex 37s 

Sortitur, volvitque vices ; is vertitur ordo — 
Pauca tibi e multis, quo tutior hospita lustres 
Aequora et Ausonio possis considere portu, 
Expediam dictis ; prohibent nam cetera Parcae 
Scire Helenum farique vetat Saturnia Juno. 380 

Principio Italiam, quam tu jam rere propinquam 
Vicinosque, ignare, paras invadere portus, 
Longa procul longis via dividit invia terris. 
Ante et Trinacria lentandus remus in unda, 
Et salis Ausonii lustrandum navibus aequor, 385 

Infernique lacus Aeaeaeque insula Circae, 
Quam tuta possis urbem componere terra. 
Signa tibi dicam ; tu condita mente teneto : 
Quum tibi sollicito secreti ad fluminis undam 
Litoreis ingens inventa sub ilicibus sus 390 

Triginta capitum fetus enixa jacebit, 
Alba, solo recubans, albi circum ubera nati, 
Is locus urbis erit, requies ea certa laborum. 
Nee tu mensarum morsus horresce futuros : 



1 68 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Fata viam invenient aderitque vocatus Apollo. 395 

Has autem terras, Italique hanc litoris oram, 

Proxima quae nostri perfunditur aequoris aestu, 

Effuge ; cuncta malis habitantur moenia Graiis. 

Hie et Narycn posuerunt moenia Locri, 

Et Sallentinos obsedit milite campos 400 

Lyctius Idomeneus ; hie ilia ducis Meliboei 

Parva Philoctetae subnixa Petelia muro. 

Quin, ubi transmissae steterint trans aequora classes 

Et positis aris jam vota in litore solves, 

Purpureo velare comas adopertus amictu, 405 

Ne qua inter sanctos ignes in honore deorum 

Hostilis facies occurrat et omina turbet. 

Hunc socii morem sacrorum, hunc ipse teneto ; 

Hac casti maneant in religione nepotes. 

Ast ubi digressum Siculae te admoverit orae, 410 

Ventus et angusti rarescent claustra Pelori, 

Laeva tibi tellus et longo laeva petantur 

Aequora circuitu ; dextrum fuge litus et undas. 

Haec loca vi quondam et vasta convulsa ruina — 

Tantum aevi longinqua valet mutare vetustas — 415 

Dissiluisse ferunt, quum protinus utraque tellus 

Una foret ; venit medio vi pontus et undis 

Hesperium Siculo latus abscidit, arvaque et urbes 

Litore diductas angusto interluit aestu. 

Dextrum Scylla latus, laevum implacata Charybdis 420 

Obsidet, atque imo barathri ter gurgite vastos 

Sorbet in abruptum fluctus, rursusque sub auras 

Erigit alternos et sidera verberat unda. 

At Scyllam caecis cohibet spelunca latebris, 

Ora exsertantem et naves in saxa trahentem. 425 

Prima hominis facies et pulchro pectore virgo 

Pube tenus, postrema immani corpore pristis, 

Delphinum caudas utero commissa luporum. 

Praestat Trinacrii metas lustrare Pachyni 

Cessantem, longos et circumflectere cursus, 43 o 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 1 69 

Quam semel informem vasto vidisse sub antro 

Scyllam et caeruleis canibus resonantia saxa. 

Praeterea, si qua est Heleno prudentia, vati 

Si qua fides, animum si veris implet Apollo, 

Unum illud tibi, nate dea, proque omnibus unum 435 

Praedicam, et repetens iterumque iterumque monebo : 

Junonis magnae primum prece numen adora ; 

Junoni cane vota libens dominamque potentem 

Supplicibus supera donis : sic denique victor 

Trinacria fines Italos mittere relicta. 440 

Hue ubi delatus Cumaeam accesseris urbem 

Divinosque lacus et Averna sonantia silvis, 

Insanam vatem adspicies, quae rupe sub ima 

Fata canit foliisque notas et nomina mandat. 

Quaecumque in foliis descripsit carmina virgo, 445 

Digerit in numerum atque antro seclusa relinquit. 

Ilia manent immota locis neque ab ordine cedunt ; 

Verum eadem, verso tenuis quum cardine ventus 

Impulit et teneras turbavit janua frondes, 

Numquam deinde cavo volitantia prendere saxo, 450 

Nee revocare situs aut jungere carmina curat : 

Inconsulti abeunt, sedemque odere Sibyllae. 

Hie tibi ne qua morae fuerint dispendia tanti, 

Quamvis increpitent socii, et vi cursus in altum 

Vela vocet possisque sinus implere secundos, 455 

Quin adeas vatem precibusque oracula poscas 

Ipsa canat, vocemque volens atque ora resolvat. 

Ilia tibi Italiae populos venturaque bella, 

Et quo quemque modo fugiasque ferasque laborem, 

Expediet, cursusque dabit venerata secundos. 4 v 

Haec sunt, quae nostra liceat te voce moneri. 

Vade age, et ingentem factis fer ad aethera Trojam. 

Quae postquam vates sic ore effatus amico est, 
Dona dehinc auro gravia sectoque elephanto 
Imperat ad naves ferri, stipatque carinis 46 

Ingens argentum, Dodonaeosque lebetas, 



170 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Loricam consertam hamis auroque trilicem, 

Et conum. insignis galeae cristasque com antes, 

Arma Neoptolemi. Sunt et sua dona parenti. 

Addit equos, additque duces ; 470 

Remigium supplet ; socios simul instruit armis. 

Interea classem velis aptare jubebat 
Anchises, fieret vento mora ne qua ferenti. 
Quern Phoebi interpres multo compellat honore : 
Conjugio, Anchise, Veneris dignate superbo, 475 

Cura deum, bis Pergameis erepte ruinis, 
Ecce tibi Ausoniae tellus ; hanc arripe velis. 
Et tamen hanc pelago praeterlabare necesse est ; 
Ausoniae pars ilia procul, quam pandit Apollo. 
Vade, ait, o felix nati pietate. Quid ultra 480 

Provehor et fando surgentes demoror austros ? 
Nee minus Andromache, digressu maesta supremo, 
Fert picturatas auri subtemine vestes 
Et Phrygian! Ascanio chlamydem, nee cedit honori, 
Textilibusque onerat donis, ac talia fatur : 485 

Accipe et haec, manuum tibi quae monumenta mearum 
Sint, puer, et longum Andromachae testentur amorem, 
Conjugis Hectoreae. Cape dona extrema tuorum, 
O mihi sola mei super Astyanactis imago. 
Sic oculos, sic ille manus, sic ora ferebat ; 49 o 

Et nunc aequali tecum pubesceret aevo. 
Hos ego digrediens lacrimis affabar obortis : 
Vivite felices, quibus est fortuna peracta 
Jam sua ; nos alia ex aliis in fata vocamur. 
Vobis parta quies ; nullum maris aequor arandum, 495 

Arva neque Ausoniae semper cedentia retro 
Quaerenda. Effigiem Xanthi Trojamque videtis, 
Quam yestrae fecere manus, melioribus, opto, 
Auspiciis, et quae fuerit minus obvia Graiis. 
Si quando Thybrim vicinaque Thybridis arva 500 

Intraro gentique meae data moenia cernam, 
Cognatas urbes olim populosque propinquos, 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 171 

Epiro, Hesperia, quibus idem Dardanus auctor 

Atque idem casus, unam faciemus utramque 

Trojam animis ; maneat nostros ea cura nepotes. s°5 

Provehimur pelago vicina Ceraunia juxta, 
Unde iter Italiam cursusque brevissimus undis. 
Sol ruit interea et montes umbrantur opaci. 
Sternimur optatae gremio telluris ad n.ndam, 
Sortiti remos, passimque in litore sicco 510 

Corpora curamus ; fessos sopor irrigat artus. 
Necdum orbem medium Nox horis acta subibat : 
Haud segnis strato surgit Palinurus et omnes 
Explorat ventos, atque auribus aera captat ; 
Sidera cuncta notat tacito labentia coelo, 515 

Arcturum pluviasque Hyadas geminosque Triones, 
Armatumque auro circumspicit Oriona. 
Postquam cuncta videt coelo constare sereno, 
Dat clarum e puppi signum • nos castra movemus, 
Tentamusque viam et velorum pandimus alas. 520 

Jamque rubescebat stellis Aurora fugatis, 
Quum procul obscuros colles humilemque videmus 
Italiam. Italiam primus conclamat Achates, 
Italiam laeto socii clamore salutant. 

Turn pater Anchises magnam cratera corona 525 

Induit implevitque mero, divosque vocavit 
Stans celsa in puppi : 

Di maris et terrae tempestatumque potentes, 
Ferte viam vento facilem et spirate secundi. 
Crebrescunt optatae aurae, portusque patescit 530 

Jam proprior, templumque apparet in arce Minervae. 
Vela legunt socii, et proras ad litora torquent. 
Portus ab Euroo fluctu curvatus in arcum ; 
Objectae salsa spumant adspergine cautes ; 
Ipse latet ; gemino demittunt brachia muro 535 

Turriti scopuli, refugitque ab litore templum. 
Quatuor hie, primum omen, equos in gramine vidi 
Tondentes campum late, candore nivali. 



172 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Et pater Anchises : Bellum, o terra hospita, portas ; 

Bello armantur equi, bellum haec armenta minantur. 540 

Sed tamen idem olim curru succedere sueti 

Quadrupedes, et frena jugo concordia ferre : 

Spes et pads, ait. Turn numina sancta precamur 

Palladis armisonae, quae prima accepit ovantes, 

Et capita ante aras Phrygio velamur amictu ; 545 

Praeceptisque Heleni, dederat quae maxima, rite 

Junoni Argivae jussos adolemus honores. 

Haud mora, continuo perfectis ordine votis, 

Cornua velatarum obvertimus antennarum, 

Grajugenumque domos suspectaque linquimus arva. 550 

Hinc sinus Herculei, si vera est fama, Tarenti 

Cernitur ; attollit se diva Lacinia contra, 

Caulonisque arces et navifragum Scylaceum. 

Turn procul e fluctu Trinacria cernitur Aetna, 

Et gemitum ingentem pelagi pulsataque saxa 555 

Audimus longe fractasque ad litora voces, 

Exsultantque vada, atque aestu miscentur arenae. 

Et pater Anchises : Nimirum haec ilia Charybdis : 

Hos Helenus scopulos, haec saxa horrenda canebat. 

Eripite, o socii, pariterque insurgite remis. 560 

Haud minus ac jussi faciunt, primusque rudentem 

Contorsit laevas proram Palinurus ad undas ; 

Laevam cuncta cohors remis ventisque petivit. 

Tollimur in coelum curvato gurgite, et idem 

Subducta ad Manes imos desedimus unda. 565 

Ter scopuli clamorem inter cava saxa dedere ; 

Ter spumam elisam et rorantia vidimus astra. 

Interea fessos ventus cum sole reliquit, 

Ignarique viae Cyclopum allabimur oris. 

Portus ab accessu ventorum immotus et ingens 570 

Ipse ; sed horrificis juxta tonat Aetna minis, 
Interdumque atram prorumpit ad aethera nubem, 
Turbine fumantem piceo et candente favilla, 
Attollitque globos flammarum et sidera lambit ; 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 1 73 

Interdum scopulos avulsaque viscera montis 575 

Erigit eructans, liquefactaque saxa sub auras 
Cum gemitu glomerat, fundoque exaestuat imo. 
Fama est Enceladi semiustum fulmine corpus 
Urgueri mole hac, ingentemque insuper Aetnam 
Impositam ruptis flammam exspirare caminis ; 580 

Et fessum quoties mutet latus, intremere omnem 
Murmure Trinacriam, et coelum subtexere fumo. 
Noctem illam tecti silvis immania monstra 
Perferimus, nee, quae sonitum det caussa, videmus. 
Nam neque erant astrorum ignes, nee lucidus aethra 585 
Siderea polus, obscuro sed nubila coelo, 
Et lunam in nimbo nox intempesta tenebat. 
Postera jamque dies primo surgebat Eoo, 
Humentemque Aurora polo dimoverat umbram, 
Quum subito e silvis, macie confecta suprema, 590 

Ignoti nova forma viri miserandaque cultu 
Procedit supplexque manus ad litora tendit. 
Respicimus. Dira illuvies immissaque barba, 
Consertum tegumen spinis ; at cetera Graius, 
Et quondam patriis ad Trojam missus in armis. 59s 

Isque ubi Dardanios habitus et Troia vidit 
Arm a procul, paulum adspectu conterritus haesit, 
Continuitque gradum ; mox sese ad litora praeceps 
Cum fletu precibusque tulit : Per sidera testor, 
Per superos atque hoc coeli spirabile lumen, 600 

Tollite me, Teucri ; quascumque abducite terras ; 
Hoc sat erit. Scio me Danais e classibus unum, 
Et bello Il.iacos fateor petiisse Penates. 
Pro quo, si sceleris tanta est injuria nostri, 
Spargite me in fluctus, vastoque immergite ponto. 60s 

Si pereo, hominum manibus perisse juvabit. 
Dixerat, et genua amplexus genibusque volutans 
Haerebat. Qui sit, fari, quo sanguine cretus, 
Hortamur ; quae deinde agitet fortuna, fateri. 
Ipse pater dextram Anchises, haud multa moratus, 610 



174 p - VIRGILII MARONIS 

Dat juveni, atque animum praesenti pignore firmat. 

Ille haec, deposita tandem formidine, fatur : 

Sum patria ex Ithaca, comes infelicis Ulixi, 

Nomen Achemenides, Trojam genitore Adamasto 

Paupere — mansissetque utinam fortuna ! — profectus. 615 

Hie me, dum trepidi crudelia limina linquunt, 

Immemores socii vasto Cyclopis in antro 

Deseruere. Domus sanie dapibusque cruentis, 

Intus opaca, ingens. Ipse arduus, altaque pulsat 

Sidera — Di, talem terris avertite pestem ! — 620 

Nee visu facilis nee dictu affabilis ulli. 

Visceribus miserorum et sanguine vescitur atro. 

Vidi egomet, duo de numero quum corpora nostro 

Prensa manu magna medio resupinus in antro 

Frangeret ad saxum, sanieque exspersa natarent. 625 

Limina ; vidi atro quum membra fluentia tabo 

Manderet, et tepidi tremerent sub dentibus artus. 

Haud impune quidem ; nee talia passus Ulixes, 

Oblitusve sui est Ithacus discrimine tanto. 

Nam simul expletus dapibus vinoque sepultus foo 

Cervicem inflexam posuit, jacuitque per antrum 

Immensus, saniem eructans et frusta cruento 

Per somnum commixta mero, nos, magna precati 

Numina sortitique vices, una undique circum 

Fundimur, et telo lumen terebramus acuto, 635 

Ingens, quod torva solum sub fronte latebat, 

Argolici clipei aut Phoebeae lampadis instar, 

Et tandem laeti sociorum ulciscimur umbras. 

Sed fugite, o miseri, fugite, atque ab litore funem 

Rumpite. 640 

Nam qualis quantusque cavo Polyphemus in antro 

Lanigeras claudit pecudes atque ubera pressat, 

Centum alii curva haec habitant ad litora vulgo 

Infandi Cyclopes et altis montibus errant. 

Tertia jam lunae se cornua lumine complent, 645 

Quum vitam in silvis inter deserta ferarum 



AENEIDOS LIB. III. 175 

Lustra domosque traho, vastosque ab rupe Cyclopas 

Prospicio, sonitumque pedum vocemque tremisco. 

Victum infelicem, baccas lapidosaque corna, 

Dant rami, et vulsis pascunt radicibus herbae. 650 

Omnia collustrans, hanc primum ad litora classem 

Conspexi venientem. Huic me, quaecumque fuisset, 

Addixi : satis est gentem effugisse nefandam. 

Vos animam hanc potius quocumque absumite leto. 

Vix ea fatus erat, summo quum monte videmus 655 

Ipsum inter pecudes vasta se mole moventem 
Pastorem Polyphemum et litora nota petentem, 
Monstrum horrendum, informe, ingens, cui lumen ademptum. 
Trunca manu pinus regit et vestigia firmat; 
Lanigerae comitantur oves ; ea sola voluptas 660 

Solamenque mali. 

Postquam altos tetigit fluctus et ad aequora venit, 
Luminis effossi fluidum lavit inde cruorem, 
Dentibus infrendens gemitu, graditurque per aequor 
Jam medium, necdum fluctus latera ardua tinxit. 665 

Nos procul inde fugam trepidi celerare, recepto 
Supplice sic merito, tacitique incidere funem ; 
Verrimus et proni certantibus aequora remis. 
Sensit, et ad sonitum vocis vestigia torsit. 
Verum ubi nulla datur dextra affectare potestas, 6 7 o 

Nee potis Ionios fluctus aequare sequendo, 
Clamorem immensum toll it, quo pontus et omnes 
Contremuere undae, penitusque exterrita tellus 
Italiae, curvisque immugiit Aetna cavernis. 
At genus e silvis Cyclopum et montibus altis 6 75 

Excitum ruit ad portus et litora complent. 
Cernimus adstantes nequidquam lumine torvo 
Aetnaeos fratres, coelo capita alta ferentes, 
Concilium horrendum : quales quum vertice celso 
Aeriae quercus, aut coniferae cyparissi 680 

Constiterunt, silva alta Jovis, lucusve Dianae. 
Praecipites metus acer agit quocumque rudentes 



176 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Excutere, et ventis intend ere vela secundis. 
Contra jussa monent Heleni, Scyllam atque Charybdim 
Inter utramque viam leti discrimine parvo 685 

Ni teneant cursus ; certum est dare lintea retro. 
Ecce autem Boreas angusta ab sede Pelori 
Missus adest. Vivo praetervehor ostia saxo 
Pantagiae Megarosque sinus Thapsumque jacentem. 
Talia monstrabat relegens errata retrorsus 690 

Litora Achemenides, comes infelicis Ulixi. 

Sicanio praetenta sinu jacet insula contra 
Plemyrium undosum ; nomen dixere priores 
Ortygiam. Alpheum fama est hue Elidis amnem 
Occultas egisse vias subter mare ; qui nunc 6 95 

Ore, Arethusa, tuo Siculis confunditur undis. 
Jussi numina magna loci veneramur ; et inde 
Exsupero praepingue solum stagnantis Helori. 
Hinc altas cautes projectaque saxa Pachyni 
Radimus, et fatis numquam concessa moveri 700 

Apparet Camarina procul campique Geloi, 
Immanisque Gela fluvii cognomine dicta. 
Arduus inde Acragas ostentat maxima longe 
Moenia, magnanimum quondam generator equorum ; 
Teque datis linquo ventis, palmosa Selinus, 705 

Et vada dura lego saxis Lilybeia caecis. 
Hinc Drepani me portus et illaetabilis ora 
Accipit. Hie, pelagi tot tempestatibus actus, 
Heu genitorem, omnis curae casusque levamen, 
Amitto Anchisen. Hie me, pater optime, fessum 710 

Deseris, heu, tantis nequidquam erepte periclis! 
Nee vates Helenus, quum multa horrenda moneret, 
Hos mihi praedixit luctus, non dira Celaeno. 
Hie labor extremus, longarum haec meta viarum, 
Hinc me digressum vestris deus appulit oris. 715 

Sic pater Aeneas intentis omnibus unus 
Fata renarrabat divum, cursusque docebat. 
Conticuit tandem, factoque hie fine quievit. 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 177 



LIBER IV. 



At regina gravi jamdudum saucia cura 

Vulnus alit venis, et caeco carpitur igni. 

Multa viri virtus animo, multusque recursat 

Gentis honos ; haerent infixi pectore vultus 

Verbaque, nee placidam membris dat cura quietem. 5 

Postera Phoebea lustrabat lampade terras 

Humentemque Aurora polo dimoverat umbram, 

Quum sic unanimam alloquitur male sana sororem : 

Anna soror, quae me suspensam insomnia terrent ! 

Quis novus hie nostris successit sedibus hospes, 10 

Quern sese ore ferens, quam forti pectore et armis ! 

Credo equidem, nee vana fides, genus esse deorum. 

Degeneres animos timor arguit. Heu, quibus ille 

Jactatus fatis ! quae bella exhausta canebat ! 

Si mihi non animo fixum immotumque sederet, 15 

Ne cui me vinclo vellem sociare jugali, 

Postquam primus amor deceptam morte fefellit, 

Si non pertaesum thalami taedaeque fuisset, 

Huic uni forsan potui succumbere culpae. 

Anna, fatebor enim, miseri post fata Sychaei 20 

Conjugis et sparsos fraterna caede Penates, 

Solus hie inflexit sensus, animumque labantem 

Impulit. Agnosco veteris vestigia flammae. 

Sed mihi vel tellus optem prius ima dehiscat, 

Vel Pater omnipotens adigat me fulmine ad umbras, 25 

Pallentes umbras Erebi noctemque profundam, 

Ante, Pudor, quam te violo, aut tua jura resolvo. 

Ille meos, primus qui me sibi junxit, amores 

Abstulit ; ille habeat secum servetque sepulchre 

Sic effata sinum lacrimis implevit obortis. 30 

Anna refert : O luce magis dilecta sorori, 
Solane perpetua maerens carpere juventa, 



178 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Nec dulces natos, Veneris nee praemia noris ? 

Id cinerem aut Manes credis curare sepultos ? 

Esto, aegram nulli quondam flexere mariti, 35 

Non Libyae, non ante Tyro ; despectus Iarbas 

Ductoresque alii, quos Africa terra triumphis 

Dives alit : placitone etiam pugnabis amori ? 

Nec venit in mentem, quorum consederis arvis ? 

Hinc Gaetulae urbes, genus insuperabile bello, 4° 

Et Numidae infreni cingunt et inhospita Syrtis ; 

Hinc deserta siti regio, lateque furentes 

Barcaei. Quid bella Tyro surgentia dicam, 

Germanique minas ? 

Dis equidem auspicibus reor et Junone secunda 45 

Hunc cursum Iliacas vento tenuisse carinas. 

Quam tu urbem, soror, hanc cernes, quae surgere regna 

Conjugio tali ! Teucrum comitantibus armis 

Punica se quantis attollet gloria rebus ! 

Tu modo posce deos veniam, sacrisque litatis 50 

Indulge hospitio, caussasque innecte morandi, 

Dum pelago desaevit hiems et aquosus Orion, 

Quassataeque rates, dum non tractabile coelum. 

His dictis incensum animum inflammavit amore, 
Spemque dedit dubiae menti, solvitque pudorem. 55 

Principio delubra adeunt, pacemque per aras 
Exquirunt ; mactant lectas de more bidentes 
Legiferae Cereri Phoeboque patrique Lyaeo, 
Junoni ante omnes, cui vincla jugalia curae. 
Ipsa, tenens dextra pateram, pulcherrima Dido 60 

Candentis vaccae media inter cornua fundit, 
Aut ante ora deum pingues spatiatur ad aras, 
Instauratque diem donis, pecudumque reclusis 
Pectoribus inhians spirantia consulit exta. 
Heu vatum ignarae mentes ! Quid vota furentem, 65 

Quid delubra juvant ? Est molles flamma medullas 
Interea, et taciturn vivit sub pectore vulnus. 
Uritur infelix Dido totaque vagatur 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 179 

Urbe furens, qualis conjecta cerva sagitta, 

Quam procul incautam nemora inter Cresia fixit 7° 

Pastor agens telis, liquitque volatile ferrum 

Nescius ; ilia fuga silvas saltusque peragrat 

Dictaeos ; haeret lateri letalis arundo. 

Nunc media Aenean secum per moenia ducit, 

Sidoniasque ostentat opes urbemque paratam ; 75 

Incipit effari, mediaque in voce resistit ; 

Nunc eadem labente die convivia quaerit, 

Iliacosque iterum demens audire labores 

Exposcit, pendetque iterum narrantis ab ore. 

Post, ubi digressi, lumenque obscura vicissim 80 

Luna premit suadentque cadentia sidera somnos, 

Sola domo maeret vacua, stratisque relictis 

Incubat. Ilium absens absentem auditque videtque, 

Aut gremio Ascanium, genitoris imagine capta, 

Detinet, infandum si fallere possit amorem. 85 

Non coeptae adsurgunt turres, non arma juventus 

Exercet, portusve aut propugnacula bello 

Tuta parant j pendent opera interrupta minaeque 

Murorum ingentes aequataque machina coelo. 

Quam simul ac tali persensit peste teneri 90 

Cara Jovis conjux, nee famam obstare furori, 
Talibus adgreditur Venerem Saturnia dictis : 
Egregiam vero laudem et spolia ampla refertis 
Tuque puerque tuus, magnum et memorabile nomen, 
Una dolo divum si femina victa duorum est. 95 

Nee me adeo fallit veritam te moenia nostra 
Suspectas habuisse domos Karthaginis altae. 
Sed quis erit modus, aut quo nunc certamine tanto ? 
Quin potius pacem aeternam pactosque hymenaeos 
Exercemus ? habes, tota quod mente petisti : 100 

Ardet amans Dido traxitque per ossa furorem. 
Communem hunc ergo populum paribusque regamus 
Auspiciis ; liceat Phrygio servire marito, 
Dotalesque tuae Tyrios permittere dextrae. 



l8o P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Olli — sensit enim simulata rriente locutam, 105 

Quo regnum Italiae Libycas averteret oras — 
Sic contra est ingressa Venus : Quis talia demens 
Abnuat, aut tecum malit contendere bello, 
Si modo, quod memoras, factum fortuna sequatur ? 
Sed fatis incerta feror, si Juppiter unam no 

Esse velit Tyriis urbem Trojaque profectis, 
Miscerive probet populos, aut foedera jungi. 
Tu conjux ; tibi fas animum tentare precando. 
Perge ; sequar. Turn sic excepit regia Juno : 
Mecum erit iste labor. Nunc qua ratione, quod instat, 115 
Confieri possit, paucis, adverte, docebo. 
Venatum Aeneas unaque miserrima Dido 
In nemus ire parant, ubi primos crastinus ortus 
Extulerit Titan radiisque retexerit orbem. 
His ego nigrantem commixta grandine nimbum, 120 

Dum trepidant alae, saltusque indagine cingunt, 
Desuper infundam, et tonitru coelum omne ciebo. 
Diffugient comites et nocte tegentur opaca : 
Speluncam Dido dux et Trojanus eandem 
Devenient Adero, et, tua si mihi certa voluntas, 125 

Connubio jungam stabili propriamque dicabo. 
Hie hymen aeus erit. — Non adversata petenti 
Adnuit, atque dolis risit Cytherea repertis. 

Oceanum interea surgens Aurora reliquit. 
It portis jubare exorto delecta juventus ; 130 

Retia rara, plagae, lato venabula ferro, 
Massylique ruunt equites et odora canum vis. 
Reginam thalamo cunctantem ad limina primi 
Poenorum exsp'ectant, ostroque insignis et auro 
Stat sonipes ac frena ferox spumantia mandit. 135 

Tandem progreditur magna stipante caterva, 
Sidoniam picto chlamydem circumdata limbo. 
Cui pharetra ex auro, crines nodantur in aurum, 
Aurea purpuream subnectit fibula vestem. 
Nee non et Phrygii comites et laetus lulus 140 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. l8l 

Incedunt. Ipse ante alios pulcherrimus omnes 

Infert se socium Aeneas atque agmina jungit. 

Qualis ubi hibernam Lyciam Xanthique fluenta 

Deserit ac Delum maternam invisit Apollo 

Instauratque choros, mixtique altaria circum 145 

Cretesque Dryopesque fremunt pictique Agathyrsi ; 

Ipse jugis Cynthi graditur, mollique fluentem 

Fronde premit crinem fingens atque implicat auro ; 

Tela sonant humeris : haud illo segnior ibat 

Aeneas ; tantum egregio decus enitet ore. 150 

Postquam altos ventum in montes atque invia lustra, 

Ecce ferae, saxi dejectae vertice, caprae 

Decurrere jugis ; alia de parte patentes 

Transmittunt cursu campos atque agmina cervi 

Pulverulenta fuga glomerant montesque relinquunt. , 15s 

At puer Ascanius mediis in vallibus acri 

Gaudet equo, jamque hos cursu, jam praeterit illos, 

Spumantemque dari pecora inter inertia votis 

Optat aprum, aut fulvum descendere monte leonem. 

Interea magno misceri murmure coelum 160 

Incipit \ insequitur commixta grandine nimbus ; 
Et Tyrii comites passim et Trojana juventus 
Dardaniusque nepos Veneris diversa per agros 
Tecta metu petiere ; ruunt de montibus amnes. 
Speluncam Dido dux et Trojanus eandem 165 

Deveniunt. Prima et Tellus et pronuba Juno 
Dant signum ; fulsere ignes et conscius aether 
Connubiis, summoque ulularunt vertice Nymphae. 
I lie dies primus leti primusque malorum 
Caussa fuit ; neque enim specie famave movetur 170 

Nee jam furtivum Dido meditatur amorem ; 
Conjugium vocat ; hoc praetexit nomine culpam. 

Extemplo Libyae magnas it Fama per urbes, 
Fama, malum qua non aliud velocius ullum ; 
Mobilitate viget, virisque acquirit eundo ; 173 

Parva metu primo ; mox sese attollit in auras, 



1 82 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Ingrediturque solo, et caput inter nubila condit. 

Illam Terra parens, ira irritata deorum, 

Extremam, ut perhibent, Coeo Enceladoque sororem 

Progenuit, pedibus celerem et pernicibus alis, 180 

Monstrum horrendum, ingens, cui, quot sunt corpore plumae, 

Tot vigiles oculi subter, mirabile dictu, 

Tot linguae, totidem ora sonant, tot subrigit aures. 

Nocte volat coeli medio terraeque per umbram, 

Stridens, nee dulci declinat lumina somno ; 185 

Luce sedet custos aut summi culmine tecti, 

Turribus aut altis, et magnas territat urbes, 

Tam ficti pravique tenax, quam nuntia veri. 

Haec turn multiplici populos sermone replebat 

Gaudens et pariter facta atque infecta canebat : 190 

Venisse Aenean, Trojano sanguine cretum, 

Cui se pulchra viro dignetur jungere Dido ; 

Nunc hiemem inter se luxu, quam longa, fovere 

Regnorum immemores turpique cupidine captos. 

Haec passim dea foeda virum diffundit in ora. 19s 

Protinus ad regem cursus detorquet Iarban, 

Incenditque animum dictis atque aggerat iras. 

Hie Hammone satus, rapta Garamantide Nympha, 
Templa Jovi centum latis immania regnis, 
Centum aras posuit, vigilemque sacraverat ignem, 200 

Excubias divum aeternas, pecudumque cruore 
Pingue solum et variis florentia limina sertis. 
Isque amens animi et rumore accensus amaro 
Dicitur ante aras media inter numina divum 
Multa Jovem manibus supplex orasse supinis : 205 

Juppiter omnipotens, cui nunc Maurusia pictis 
Gens epulata toris Lenaeum libat honorem, 
Adspicis haec ? an te, genitor, quum fulmina torques, 
Nequidquam horremus, caecique in nubibus ignes 
Terrificant animos et inania murmura miscent ? 210 

Femina, quae nostris errans in finibus urbem 
Exiguam pretio posuit, cui litus arandum 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 1 83 

Cuique loci leges dedimus, connubia nostra 

Repulit ac dominum Aenean in regna recepit. 

Et nunc ille Paris cum semiviro comitatu, 21s 

Maeonia mentum mitra crinemque madentem 

Subnexus, rapto potitur : nos munera templis 

Quippe tuis ferimus, famamque fovemus inanem. 

Talibus orantem dictis arasque tenentem 
Audiit omnipotens, oculosque ad moenia torsit 220 

Regia et oblitos famae melioris amantes. 
Turn sic Mercurium alloquitur ac talia mandat : 
Vade age, nate, voca Zephyros et labere pennis, 
Dardaniumque ducem, Tyria Karthagine qui nunc 
Exspectat, fatisque datas non respicit urbes, 225 

Alloquere et celeres defer mea dicta per auras. 
Non ilium nobis genetrix pulcherrima talem 
Promisit Graiumque ideo bis vindicat armis ; 
Sed fore, qui gravid am imperiis belloque frementem 
Italiam regeret, genus alto a sanguine Teucri 230 

Proderet, ac totum sub leges mitteret orbem. 
Si nulla accendit tantarum gloria rerum 
Nee super ipse sua molitur laude laborem, 
Ascanione pater Romanas invidet arces ? 
Quid struit ? aut qua spe, inimica in gente, moratur, 235 
Nee prolem Ausoniam et Lavinia respicit arva ? 
Naviget : haec summa est ; hie nostri nuntius esto. 

Dixerat. Ille patris magni parere parabat 
Imperio ; et primum pedibus talaria nectit 
Aurea, quae sublimem alis sive aequora supra 240 

Seu terrain rapid o pariter cum flamine portant ; 
Turn virgam capit ; hac animas ille evocat Oreo 
Pallentes, alias sub Tartara tristia mittit, 
Dat somnos adimitque, et lumina morte resignat. 
Ilia fretus agit ventos, et turbida tranat 245 

Nubila ; jam que volans apicem et latera ardua cernit 
Atlantis duri, coelum qui vertice fulcit, 
Atlantis, cinctum adsidue cui nubibus atris 



184 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Piniferum caput et vento pulsatur et imbri ; 
Nix humeros infusa tegit ; turn flumina mento 250 

Praecipitant senis, et glacie riget horrida barba. 
Hie primum paribus nitens Cyllenius alis 
Constitit ; hinc toto praeceps se corpore ad undas 
Misit, avi similis, quae circum litora, circum 
Piscosos scopulos humilis volat aequora juxta. 255 

Haud aliter terras inter coelumque volabat, 
Litus arenosum Libyae ventosque secabat 
Materno veniens ab avo Cyllenia proles. 
Ut primum alatis tetigit magalia plantis, 
Aenean fundantem arces ac tecta novantem 260 

Conspicit : atque illi stellatus iaspide fulva 
Ensis erat, Tyrioque ardebat murice laena 
Demissa ex humeris, dives quae munera Dido 
Fecerat et tenui telas discreverat auro. 
Continuo invadit : Tu nunc Karthaginis altae 265 

Fundamenta locas, pulchramque uxorius urbem 
Exstruis ? heu regni rerumque oblite tuarum ! 
Ipse deum tibi me claro demittit Olympo 
Regnator, coelum et terras qui numine torquet ; 
Ipse haec ferre jubet celeres mandata per auras : 270 

Quid struis ? aut qua spe Libycis teris otia terris ? 
Si te nulla movet tantarum gloria rerum 
Nee super ipse tua moliris laude laborem, 
Ascanium surgentem et spes heredis Iuli 
Respice, cui regnum Italiae Romanaque tellus 275 

Debentur. Tali Cyllenius ore locutus 
Mortales visus medio sermone reliquit, 
Et procul in tenuem ex oculis evanuit auram. 
At vero Aeneas adspectu obmutuit amens, 
Arrectaeque horrore comae, et vox faucibus haesit. 280 

Ardet abire fuga dulcesque relinquere terras, 
Attonitus tanto monitu imperioque deorum. 
Heu quid agat ? quo nunc reginam ambire furentem 
Audeat affatu ? quae prima exordia sumat ? 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 1 85 

Atque animiim nunc hue celerem, nunc dividit illuc, 285 

In partesque rapit varias perque omnia versat. 

Haec alternanti potior sententia visa est : 

Mnesthea Sergestumque vocat fortemque Serestum, 

Classem aptent taciti sociosque ad litora cogant, 

Arma parent, et, quae rebus sit caussa novandis, 290 

Dissimulent ; sese interea, quando optima Dido 

Nesciat et tantos rumpi non speret amores, 

Tentaturum aditus, et quae mollissima fandi 

Tempora, quis rebus dexter modus. Ocius omnes 

Imperio laeti parent ac jussa facessunt. 295 

At regina dolos — quis fallere possit amantem ? — 
Praesensit, motusque excepit prima futuros, 
Omnia tuta timens. Eadem impia Fama furenti 
Detulit armari classem cursumque parari. 
Saevit inops animi, totamque incensa per urbem 300 

Bacchatur, qualis commotis excita sacris 
Thyias, ubi audito stimulant trieterica Baccho 
Orgia nocturnusque vocat clamore Cithaeron. 
Tandem his Aenean compellat vocibus ultro : 

Dissimulare etiam sperasti, perfide, tantum 305 

Posse nefas, tacitusque mea decedere terra ? 
Nee te noster amor, nee te data dextera quondam, 
Nee moritura tenet crudeli funere Dido ? 
Quin etiam hiberno moliris sidere classem, 
Et mediis properas aquilonibus ire per altum, 310 

Crudelis ? Quid ? si non arva aliena domosque 
Ignotas peteres, et Troja antiqua maneret, 
Troja per undosum peteretur classibus aequor ? 
Mene fugis ? Per ego has lacrimas dextramque tuam te — 
Quando aliud mihi jam miserae nihil ipsa reliqui — 315 
Per connubia nostra, per inceptos hymenaeos, 
Si bene quid de te merui, fuit aut tibi quidquam 
Dulce meum, miserere domus labentis et istam, 
Oro, si quis adhuc precibus locus, exue mentem. 
Te propter Libycae gentes Nomadumque tyranni 320 



1 86 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Odere, infensi Tyrii • te propter eundera 

Exstinctus pudor et, qua sola sidera adibam, 

Fama prior. Cui me moribundam deseris, hospes ? 

Hoc solum nomen quoniam de conjuge restat 

Quid moror ? An mea Pygmalion dum moenia frater 325 

Destruat, aut captam ducat Gaetulus Iarbas ? 

Saltern si qua mihi de te suscepta fuisset 

Ante fugam suboles, si quis mihi parvulus aula 

Luderet Aeneas, qui te tamen ore referret, 

Non equidem omnino capta ac deserta viderer. 33° 

Dixerat. Ille Jovis monitis immota tenebat 
Lumina, et obnixus curam sub corde premebat. 
Tandem pauca refert : Ego te, quae plurima fando 
Enumerare vales, numquam, Regina, negabo 
Promeritam ; nee me meminisse pigebit Elissae, 335 

Dum memor ipse mei, dum spiritus hos regit artus. 
Pro re pauca loquar. Neque ego hanc abscondere furto 
Speravi, ne finge, fugam, nee conjugis umquam 
Praetendi taedas aut haec in foedera veni. 
Me si fata meis paterentur ducere vitam 340 

Auspiciis et sponte mea componere curas, 
Urbem Trojanam primum dulcesque meorum 
Reliquias colerem, Priami tecta alta manerent, 
Et recidiva manu posuissem Pergama victis. 
Sed nunc Italiam magnam Gryneus Apollo, 34s 

Italiam Lyciae jussere capessere sortes ; 
Hie amor, haec patria est. Si te Karthaginis arces, 
Phoenissam, Libycaeque adspectus detinet urbis, 
Quae tandem, Ausonia Teucros considere terra, 
Invidiaest? Et nos fas extera quaerere regna. 350 

Me patris Anchisae, quoties humentibus umbris 
Nox operit terras, quoties astra ignea surgunt, 
Admonet in somnis et turbida terret imago ; 
Me puer Ascanius capitisque injuria cari, 
Quern regno Hesperiae fraudo et fatalibus arvis. 355 

Nunc etiam interpres divum, Jove missus ab ipso — 



; 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 187 

Testor utrumque caput — celeres mandata per auras 
Detulit ; ipse deum manifesto in lumine vidi 
Intrantem muros, vocemque his auribus hausi. 
Desine meque tuis incendere teque querelis ; 360 

Italiam non sponte sequor. 

Talia dicentem jamdudum aversa tuetur, 
Hue illuc volvens oculos, totumque pererrat 
Luminibus tacitis, et sic accensa profatur : 
Nee tibi diva parens, generis nee Dardanus auctor, 365 
Perfide ; sed duris genuit te cautibus horrens 
Caucasus, Hyrcanaeque admorunt ubera tigres. 
Nam quid dissimulo ? aut quae me ad majora reservo? 
Num fletu ingemuit nostro ? num lumina flexit ? 
Num lacrimas victus dedit, aut miseratus amantem est? 370 
Quae quibus anteferam ? Jam jam nee maxima Iuno, 
Nee Saturnius haec oculis pater adspicit aequis. 
Nusquam tuta fides. Ejectum litore egentem 
Excepi et regni demens in parte locavi ; 
Amissam classem, socios a morte reduxi. 375 

Heu furiis incensa feror ! Nunc augur Apollo, 
Nunc Lyciae sortes, nunc et Jove missus ab ipso ' 
Interpres divum fert horrida jussa per auras. 
Scilicet is Superis labor est, ea cura quietos 
Sollicitat. Neque te terieo, neque dicta refello ; 380 

I, sequere Italiam ventis, pete regna per undas. 
Spero equidem mediis, si quid pia numina possunt, 
Supplicia hausurum scopulis, et nomine Dido 
Saepe vocaturum. Sequar atris ignibus absens, 
Et, quum frigida mors anima seduxerit artus, 385 

Omnibus umbra locis adero. Dabis, improbe, poenas. 
Audiam, et haec Manes veniet mihi fama sub imos. 
His medium dictis sermonem abrumpit, et auras 
Aegra fugit, seque ex oculis avertit et aufert, 
Linquens multa metu cunctantem et multa parantem 390 
Dicere. Suscipiunt famulae, collapsaque membra 
Marmoreo referunt thalamo stratisque reponunt. 



1 88 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

At pius Aeneas, quamquam lenire dolentem 
Solando cupit et dictis avertere curas, 
Multa gemens magnoque animum labefactus amore, 395 
Jussa tamen divum exsequitur, classemque revisit. 
Turn vero Teucri incumbunt et litore celsas 
Deducunt toto navis. Natat uncta carina, 
Frondentesque ferunt remos et robora silvis 
Infabricata, fugae studio. 400 

Migrantes cernas, totaque ex urbe ruentes. 
Ac velut ingentem formicae farris acervum 
Quum populant, hiemis memores, tectoque reponunt ; 
It nigrum campis agmen, praedamque per herbas 
Convectant calle angusto ; pars grandia trudunt 40s 

Obnixae frumenta humeris ; pars agmina cogunt 
Castigantque moras ; opere omnis semita fervet. 
Quis tibi turn, Dido, cernenti talia sensus, 
Quosve dabas gemitus, quum litora fervere late 
Prospiceres arce ex summa, totumque videres 410 

Misceri ante oculos tantis clamoribus aequor ? 
Improbe amor, quid non mortalia pectora cogis ? 
Ire iterum in lacrimas, iterum tentare precando 
Cogitur, et supplex animos submittere amori, 
Ne quid inexpertum frustra moritura relinquat. 415 

Anna, vides toto properari litore ? Circum 
Undique convenere ; vocat jam carbasus auras, 
Puppibus et laeti nautae imposuere coronas. 
Hunc ego si potui tantum sperare dolorem, 
Et perferre, soror, potero. Miserae hoc tamen unum 420 
Exsequere, Anna, mihi ; solam nam perfidus ille 
Te colere, arcanos etiam tibi credere sensus ; 
Sola viri molles aditus et tempora noras : 
I, soror, atque hostem supplex affare superbum : 
Non ego cum Danais Trojanam exscindere gentem 425 

Aulide juravi, classemve ad Pergama misi, 
Nee patris Anchisae cinerem Manesve revelli : 
Cur mea dicta negat duras demittere in aures ? 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 1 89 

Quo ruit ? extremum hoc miserae det munus amanti : 
Exspectet facilemque fugam ventosque ferentes. 430 

Non jam conjugium antiquum, quod prodidit, oro, 
Nee pulchro ut Latio careat regnumque relinquat ; 
Tempus inane peto, requiem spatiumque furori, 
Dum mea me victam doceat fortuna dolere. 
Extremam hanc oro veniam — miserere sororis — 435 

Quam mihi quum dederis, cumulatam morte remittam. 

Talibus orabat, talesque miserrima fietus 
Fertque refertque soror. Sed nullis ille movetur 
Fletibus, aut voces ullas tractabilis audit ; 
Fata obstant, placidasque viri deus obstruit aures. 440 

Ac velut annoso validam quum robore quercum 
Alpini Boreae nunc hinc nunc flatibus illinc 
Eruere inter se certant ; it stridor, et altae 
Consternunt terrain concusso stipite frondes ; 
Ipsa haeret scopulis, et, quantum vertice ad auras 445 

Aetherias, tan turn radice in Tartara tendit : 
Haud secus adsiduis hinc atque hinc vocibus heros 
Tunditur, et magno persentit pectore curas ; 
Mens immota manet ; lacrimae volvuntur inanes. 

Turn vero infelix fatis exterrita Dido 450 

Mortem orat ; taedet coeli convexa tueri. 
Quo magis inceptum peragat lucemque relinquat, 
Vidit, turicremis quum dona imponeret aris — 
Horrendum dictu — latices nigrescere sacros 
Fusaque in obscenum se vertere vina cruorem. 455 

Hoc visum nulli, non ipsi effata sorori. 
Praeterea fuit in tectis de marmore templum 
Conjugis antiqui, miro quod honore colebat, 
Velleribus niveis et festa fronde revinctum : 
Hinc exaudiri voces et verba vocantis 460 

Visa viri, nox quum terras obscura teneret ; 
Solaque culminibus ferali carmine bubo 
Saepe queri et longas in fletum ducere voces ; 
Multaque praeterea vatum praedicta priorum 



190 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Terribili monitu horrificant. Agit ipse furentem 465 

In somnis ferus Aeneas ; semperque relinqui 

Sola sibi, semper longam incomitata videtur 

Ire viam et Tyrios deserta quaerere terra : 

Eumenidum veluti demens videt agmina Pentheus, 

Et solem geminum et duplices se ostendere Thebas ; 470 

Aut Agamemnonius scenis agitatus Orestes 

Armatam facibus matrem et serpentibus atris 

Quum fugit, ultricesque sedent in limine Dirae. 

Ergo ubi concepit furias evicta dolore 
Decrevitque mori, tempus secum ipsa modumque 475 

Exigit, et, maestam dictis aggressa sororem, 
Consilium vultu tegit, ac spem fronte serenat : 
Inveni, germana, viam, — gratare sorori — 
Quae milii reddat eum, vel eo me solvat amantem. 
Oceani finem juxta solemque cadentem 480 

Ultimus Aethiopum locus est, ubi maximus Atlas 
Axem humero torquet stellis ardentibus aptum : 
Hinc mihi Massylae gentis monstrata sacerdos, 
Hesperidum templi custos, epulasque draconi 
Quae dabat et sacros servabat in arbore ramos, 485 

Spargens humida mella soporiferumque papaver. 
Haec se carminibus promittit solvere mentes, 
Quas velit, ast aliis duras immittere curas ; 
Sistere aquam fluviis, et vertere sidera retro ; 
Nocturnosque ciet Manes ; mugire videbis 490 

Sub pedibus terrain, et descendere montibus ornos. 
Testor, cara, deos et te, germana, tuumque 
Dulce caput, magicas invitam accingier artes. 
Tu secreta pyram tecto interiore sub auras 
Erige, et arma viri, thalamo quae fixa reliquit 495 

Impius, exuviasque omnes, lectumque jugalem, 
Quo perii, superimponant : abolere nefandi 
Cuncta viri monumenta juvat, monstratque sacerdos. 
Haec effata silet ; pallor simul occupat ora. 
Non tamen Anna novis praetexere funera sacris 500 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 191 

Germanam credit, nee tantos mente furores 
Concipit, aut graviora timet quam morte SychaeL 
Ergo jussa parat. 

At regina, pyra penetrali in sede sub auras 
Erecta ingenti taedis atque ilice secta, 505 

Intenditque locum sertis et fronde coronat 
Funerea ; super exuvias ensemque relictum 
Emgiemque toro locat, haud ignara futuri. 
Stant arae circum, et crines effusa sacerdos 
Ter centum tonat ore deos, Erebumque Chaosque 51° 

Tergeminamque Hecaten, tria virginis ora Dianae. 
Sparserat et latices simulatos fontis Averni, 
Falcibus et messae ad Lunam quaeruntur aenis 
Pubentes herbae nigri cum lacte veneni ; 
Quaeritur et nascentis equi de fronte revulsus 515 

Et matri praereptus amor. 
Ipsa mola manibusque piis altaria juxta, 
Unum exuta pedem vinclis, in veste recincta, 
Testatur moritura deos et conscia fati 
Sidera ; turn, si quod non aequo foedere amantes 520 

Curae numen habet justumque memorque, precatur. 

Nox erat, et placidum carpebant fessa soporem 
Corpora per terras, silvaeque et saeva quierant 
Aequora, quum medio volvuntur sidera lapsu, 
Quum tacet omnis ager, pecudes pictaeque volucres, 525 
Quaeque lacus late liquidos, quaeque aspera dumis 
Rura tenent, somno positae sub nocte silenti 
[Lenibant curas, et corda oblita laborum]. 
At non infelix animi Phoenissa, nee unquam 
Solvitur in somnos, oculisve aut pectore noctem 530 

Accipit : ingeminant curae, rursusque resurgens 
Saevit amor, magnoque irarum fluctuat aestu. 
Sic adeo insistit, secumque ita corde volutat : 
En, quid ago ? rursusne procos irrisa priores 
Experiar, Nomadumque petam connubia supplex, 53s 

Quos ego sim toties jam dedignata maritos ? 



192 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Iliacas igitur classis atque ultima Teucrum 

Jussa sequar ? quiane auxilio juvat ante levatos, 

Et bene apud memores veteris stat gratia facti ? 

Quis me autem, fac velle, sinet, ratibusve superbis 540 

Invisam accipiet ? Nescis heu, perdita, necdum 

Laomedonteae sends perjuria gentis ? 

Quid turn ? sola fuga nautas comitabor ovantes ? 

An Tyriis omnique manu stipata meorum 

Inferar, et, quos Sidonia vix urbe reveili, 545 

Rursus agam pelago, et ventis dare vela jubebo ? 

Quin morere, ut merita es, ferroque averte dolorem. 

Tu lacrimis evicta meis, tu prima furentem 

His, germana, malis oneras atque objicis hosti. 

Non licuit thalami expertem sine crimine vitam 55 o 

Degere, more ferae, tales nee tangere curas ! 

Non servata fides, cineri promissa Sychaeo ! 

Tantos ilia suo rumpebat pectore questus. 

Aeneas celsa in puppi, jam certus eundi, 
Carpebat somnos, rebus jam rite paratis. 555 

Huic se forma dei vultu redeuntis eodem 
Obtulit in somnis, rursusque ita visa monere est, 
Omnia Mercurio similis, vocemque- coloremque 
Et crines flavos et membra decora juventa : 
Nate dea, potes hoc sub casu ducere somnos, 560 

Nee, quae te circum stent deinde pericula, cernis, 
Demens, nee Zephyros audis spirare secundos ? 
Ilia dolos dirumque nefas in pectore versat, 
Certa mori, varioque irarum fluctuat aestu. 
Non fugis hinc praeceps, dum praecipitare potestas ? 565 
Jam mare turbari trabibus, saevasque videbis 
Collucere faces, jam fervere litora flammis, 
Si te his attigerit terris Aurora morantem. 
Eja age, rumpe moras. Varium et mutabile semper 
Femina. Sic fatus nocti se immiscuit atrae. 570 

Turn vero Aeneas, subitis exterritus umbris, 
Corripit e somno corpus sociosque fatigat j 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 1 93 

Praecipites vigilate viri, et considite transtris ; 

Solvite vela citi. Deus aethere missus ab alto 

Festinare fugam tortosque incidere funes 575 

Ecce iterum stimulat. Sequimur te, sancte deorum, 

Quisquis es, imperioque iterum paremus ovantes. 

Adsis o placidusque juves, et sidera coelo 

Dextra feras. Dixit, vaginaque eripit ensem 

Fulmineum, strictoque ferit retinacula ferro. 580 

Idem omnis simul ardor habet, rapiuntque ruuntque ; 

Litora deseruere ; latet sub classibus aequor ; 

Adnixi torquent spumas et caeru.la verrunt. 

Et jam prima novo spargebat lumine terras 
Tithoni croceum linquens Aurora cubile. 585 

Regina e speculis ut primum albescere lucem 
Vidit et aequatis classem procedere velis, 
Litoraque et vacuos sensit sine remige portus, 
Terque quaterque manu pectus percussa decorum 
Flaventesque abscissa comas, Pro Juppiter ! ibit 590 

Hie, ait, et nostris illuserit advena regnis ? 
Non arma expedient, totaque ex urbe sequentur, 
Deripientque rates alii navalibus ? Ite, 
Ferte citi flammas, date tela, impellite remos ! — 
Quid loquor? autubi sum? Quaementeminsaniamutat? 595 
Infelix Dido ! nunc te facta impia tangunt? 
Turn decuit, quum sceptra dabas. — En dextra fidesque, 
Quern secum patrios aiunt portare Penates, 
Quern subiisse humeris confectum aetate parentem ! — 
Non potui abreptum divellere corpus et undis 600 

Spargere ? non socios, non ipsum absumere ferro 
Ascanium, patriisque epulandum ponere mensis ? — 
Verum anceps pugnae fueret fortuna. — Fuisset ; 
Quern metui moritura ? Faces in castra tulissem, 
Implessemque foros flammis, natumque patremque 605 

Cum genere exstinxem, memet super ipsa dedissem. — 
Sol, qui terrarum flammis opera omnia lustras, 
Tuque harum interpres curarum et conscia Juno, 



194 p - VIRGILII MARONIS 

Nocturnisque Hecate triviis ululata per urbes, 

Et Dirae ultrices, et di morientis Elissae, 610 

Accipite haec, meri turn que malis advertite numen, 

Et nostras audite preces. Si tangere portus 

Infandum caput ac terris adnare necesse est, 

Et sic fata Jovis poscunt, hie terminus haeret : 

At bello audacis populi vexatus et armis, 615 

Finibus extorris, complexu avulsus Iuli, 

Auxilium imploret, videatque indigna suorum 

Funera ; nee, quum se sub leges pacis iniquae 

Tradiderit, regno aut optata luce fruatur ; 

Sed cadat ante diem mediaque inhumatus arena. 620 

Haec precor, hanc vocem extremam cum sanguine fundo. 

Turn vos, o Tyrii, stirpem et genus omne futurum 

Exercete odiis, cinerique haec mittite nostro 

Munera. Nullus amor populis, nee foedera sunto 

Exoriare aliquis nostris ex ossibus ultor, 625 

Qui face Dardanios ferroque sequare colonos, 

Nunc, olim, quocumque dabunt se tempore vires. 

Litora litoribus contraria, fluctibus undas 

Imprecor, arma armis ; pugnent ipsique nepotesque. 

Haec ait, et partes animum versabat in omnes, 630 

Invisam quaerens quam primum abrumpere lucem. 
Turn breviter Barcen nutricem affata Sychaei ; 
Namque suam patria antiqua cinis ater habebat : 
Annam cara mihi nutrix hue siste sororem ; 
Die corpus properet fluviali spargere lympha, 635 

Et pecudes secum et monstrata piacula ducat ; 
Sic veniat ; tuque ipsa pia tege tempora vitta. 
Sacra Jovi Stygio, quae rite incepta paravi, 
Perficere est animus, finemque imponere curis, 
Dardaniique rogum capitis permittere flammae. 640 

Sic ait. Ilia gradum studio celerabat anili. 
At trepida, et coeptis immanibus effera Dido, 
Sanguineam volvens aciem, maculisque trementes 
Interfusa genas, et pallida morte futura, 



AENEIDOS LIB. IV. 



195 



Interiora domus irrumpit limina, et altos 6 45 

Conscendit furibunda rogos, ensemque recludit 

Dardanium, non hos quaesitum munus in usus. 

Hie, postquam Iliacas vestes notumque cubile 

Conspexit, paulum lacrimis et mente morata, 

Incubuitque toro, dixitque novissima verba : 650 

Dulces exuviae, dum fata deusque sinebat, 

Accipite hanc animam, meque his exsolvite curis. 

Vixi, et, quern dederat cursum fortuna, peregi ; 

Et nunc magna mei sub terras ibit imago. 

Urbem praeclaram statui ; mea moenia vidi ; 655 

Ulta virum, poenas inimico a fratre recepi \ 

Felix, heu nimium felix, si litora tantum 

Numquam Dardaniae tetigissent nostra carinae ! 

Dixit, et, os impressa toro, Moriemur inultae ? 

Sed moriamur, ait. Sic, sic juvat ire sub umbras. 660 

Hauriat hunc oculis ignem crudelis ab alto 

Dardanus, et nostrae secum ferat omina mortis. 

Dixerat ; atque illam media inter talia ferro 

Collapsam adspiciunt comites, ensemque cruore 

Spumantem, sparsasque manus. It clamor ad alta 665 

Atria ; concussam bacchatur Fama per urbem. 

Lamentis gemituque et femineo ululatu 

Tecta fremunt ; resonat magnis plangoribus aether. 

Non aliter, quam si immissis ruat hostibus omnis 

Karthago aut antiqua Tyros, flammaeque furentes 670 

Culmina perque hominum volvantur perque deorum. 

Audiit exanimis, trepidoque exterrita cursu 

Unguibus ora soror foedans et pectora pugnis 

Per medios ruit, ac morientem nomine clamat : 

Hoc illud, germana, fuit ? me fraude petebas ? 6 75 

Hoc rogus iste mihi, hoc ignes araeque parabant ? 

Quid primum deserta querar ? comitemne sororem 

Sprevisti moriens ? Eadem me ad fata vocasses ; 

Idem ambas ferro dolor, atque eadem hora tulisset. 

His etiam struxi manibus, patriosque vocavi 680 



196 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Voce deos. sic te ut posita crudelis abessem ? 

Exstinxti te meque, soror, populumque patresque 

Sidonios urbemque tuam. Date vulnera lymphis, 

Abluam, et, extremus si quis super halitus errat, 

Ore legam. Sic fata gradus evaserat altos, 685 

Semianimemque sinu germanam amplexa fovebat 

Cum gemitu, atque atros siccabat veste cruores. 

Ilia, graves oculos conata attollere, rursus 

Deficit ; infixum stridit sub pectore vulnus. 

Ter sese attollens cubitoque adnixa levavit ; 690 

Ter revoluta toro est, oculisque errantibus alto 

Quaesivit coelo lucem, ingemuitque reperta. 

Turn Juno omnipotens, longum miserata dolorem 
Difncilesque obitus, Irim demisit Olympo, 
Quae luctantem animam nexosque resolveret artus. 695 

Nam quia nee fato, merita nee morte peribat, 
Sed misera ante diem, subitoque accensa furore, 
Nondum illi flavum Proserpina vertice crinem 
Abstulerat, Stygioque caput damnaverat Oreo. 
Ergo Iris croceis per coelum roscida pennis, 700 

Mille trahens varios adverso sole colores, 
Devolat, et supra caput adstitit : Hunc ego Diti 
Sacrum jussa fero, teque isto corpore solvo. 
Sic ait, et dextra crinem secat ; omnis et una 
Dilapsus calor, atque in ventos vita recessit. 70s 



LIBER V. 

Interea medium Aeneas jam classe tenebat 
Certus iter, fluctusque atros aquilone secabat, 
Moenia respiciens, quae jam infelicis Elissae 
Collucent flammis. Quae tantum accenderit ignem, 
Caussa latet ; duri magno sed amore dolores 
Polluto, notumque, furens quid femina possit, 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. I97 

Triste per augurium Teucrorum pectora ducunt. 

Ut pelagus tenuere rates, nee jam amplius ulla 
Occurrit tellus, maria undique et undique coelum, 
Olli caeruleus supra caput adstitit imber, i° 

Noctem hiememque ferens, et inhorruit unda tenebris. 
Ipse gubernator puppi Palinurus ab alta : 
Heu ! quianam tanti cinxerunt aethera nimbi ? 
Quidve, pater Neptune, paras ? Sic deinde locutus 
Colligere arma jubet validisque incumbere remis, 15 

Obliquatque sinus in ventum, ac talia fatur : 
Magnanime Aenea, non, si mihi Juppiter auctor 
Spondeat, hoc sperem Italiam contingere coelo. 
Mutati transversa fremunt et vespere ab atro 
Consurgunt venti, atque in nubem cogitur aer. 20 

Nee nos obniti contra, nee tendere tantum 
Sumcimus. Superat quoniam Fortuna, sequamur, 
Quoque vocat, vertamus iter. Nee litora longe 
Fida refcr fraterna Erycis portusque Sicanos, 
Si modo rite memor servata remetior astra. 25 

Turn pius Aeneas : Equidem sic poscere ventos 
Jamdudum et frustra cerno te tendere contra. 
Flecte viam velis. An sit mihi gratior ulla, 
Quove magis fessas optem demittere naves, 
Quam quae Dardanium tellus mihi servat Acesten, 3° 

Et patris Anchisae gremio complectitur ossa ? 
Haec ubi dicta, petunt portus, et vela secundi 
Intendunt Zephyri ; fertur cita gurgite classis, 
Et tandem laeti notae advertuntur arenae. 

At procul excelso miratus vertice montis 35 

Adventum sociasque rates occurrit Acestes, 
Horridus in jaculis et pelle Libystidis ursae, 
Troia Crimiso conceptum flumine mater 
Quern genuit. Veterum non immemor ille parentum 
Gratatur reduces et gaza laetus agresti 40 

Excipit, ac fessos opibus solatur amicis. 

Postera quum primo Stellas Oriente fugarat 



198 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Clara dies, socios in coetum litore ab omni 

Advocat Aeneas, tumulique ex aggere fatur : 

Dardanidae magni, genus alto a sanguine divum> 4S 

Annuus exactis completur mensibus orbis, 

Ex quo reliquias divinique ossa parentis 

Condidimus terra maestasque sacravimus aras. 

Jamque dies, nisi fallor, adest, quern semper acerbum, 

Semper honoratum — sic di voluistis — habebo. 50 

Hunc ego Gaetulis agerem si Syrtibus exsul, 

Argolicove mari deprensus et urbe Mycenae, 

Annua vota tamen sollemnesque ordine pompas 

Exsequerer, strueremque suis altaria donis. 

Nunc ultro ad cineres ipsius et ossa parentis, 55 

Haud equidem sine mente reor, sine numine divum, 

Adsumus et portus delati intramus amicos. 

Ergo agite, et laetum cuncti celebremus honorem ; 

Poscamus ventos, atque haec me sacra quot annis 

Urbe velit posita templis sibi ferre dicatis. 60 

Bina boum vobis Troja generatus Acestes 

Dat numero capita in naves ; adhibete Penates 

Et patrios epulis et quos colit hospes Acestes. 

Praeterea, si nona diem mortalibus almum 

Aurora extulerit radiisque retexerit orbem, 65 

Prima citae Teucris ponam certamina classis ; 

Quique pedum cursu valet, et qui viribus audax 

Aut jaculo incedit melior levibusque sagittis, 

Seu crudo fidit pugnam committere caestu, 

Cuncti adsint, meritaeque exspectent praemia palmae. 70 

Ore favete omnes, et cingite tempora ramis. 

Sic fatus velat materna tempora myrto. 
Hoc Helymus facit, hoc aevi maturus Acestes, 
Hoc puer Ascanius, sequitur quos cetera pubes. 
Hie e concilio multis cum milibus ibat • 7$ 

Ad tumulum, magna medius comitante caterva. 
Hie duo rite mero libans carchesia Baccho 
Fundit humi, duo lacte novo, duo sanguine sacro, 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 1 99 

Purpureosque jacit flores, ac talia fatur : 
Salve, sancte parens, iterum : salvete, recepti 80 

Nequidquam cineres, animaeque umbraeque paternae. 
Non licuit fines Italos fataliaque arva, 
Nee tecum Ausonium, quicumque est, quaerere Thybrim. 
Dixerat haec, adytis quum lubricus anguis ab imis 
Septem ingens gyros, septena volumina traxit, 85 

Amplexus placide tumulum lapsusque per aras, 
Caeruleae cui terga notae maculosus et auro 
Squamam incendebat fulgor ceu nubibus arcus 
Mille jacit varios adverso sole colores. 
Obstupuit visu Aeneas. Ille agmine longo 9° 

Tandem inter pateras et levia pocula serpens 
Libavitque dapes, rursusque innoxius imo 
Successit tumulo, et depasta altaria liquit. 
Hoc magis inceptos genitori instaurat honores, 
Incertus, Geniumne loci famulumne parentis 95 

Esse putet ; caedit binas de more bidentes, 
Totque sues, totidem nigrantes terga juvencos ; 
Vinaque fundebat pateris, animamque vocabat 
Anchisae magni Manesque Acheronte remissos. 
Nee non et socii, quae cuique est copia, laeti 100 

Dona ferunt, onerant aras, mactantque juvencos ; 
Ordine aena locant alii, fusique per herbam 
Subjiciunt veribus prunas et viscera torrent. 
Exspectata dies aderat nonamque serena 
Auroram Phaethontis equi jam luce vehebant, 105 

Famaque finitimos et clari nomen Acestae 
Excierat ; laeto complebant litora coetu, 
Visuri Aeneadas, pars et certare parati. 
Munera principio ante oculos circoque locantur 
In medio, sacri tripodes viridesque coronae «o 

Et palmae pretium victoribus, armaque et ostro 
Perfusae vestes, argenti aurique talentum ; 
Et tuba commissos medio canit aggere ludos. 
Prima pares ineunt gravibus certamina remis 



2 00 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Quatuor ex omni delectae classe carinae. « s 

Velocem Mnestheus agit acri remige Pristim, 
Mox Italus Mnestheus, genus a quo nomine Memmi, 
Ingentemque Gyas ingenti mole Chimaeram, 
Urbis opus, triplici pubes quam Dardana versu 
Impellunt, terno consurgunt ordine remi ; 120 

Sergestusque, domus tenet a quo Sergia nomen, 
Centauro invehitur magna, Scyllaque Cloanthus 
Caerulea, genus unde tibi, Romane Cluenti. 

Est procul in pelago saxum spumantia contra 
Litora, quod tumidis submersum tunditur olim 125 

Fluctibus, hiberni condunt ubi sidera Cori ; 
Tranquillo silet, immotaque attollitur unda 
Campus et apricis statio gratissima mergis. 
Hie viridem Aeneas frondenti ex ilice metam 
Constituit signum nautis pater, unde reverti 130 

Scirent et longos ubi circumflectere cursus. 
Turn loca sorte legunt, ipsique in puppibus auro 
Ductores longe effulgent ostroque decori • 
Cetera populea velatur fronde juventus 
Nudatosque humeros oleo perfusa nitescit. 13s 

Considunt transtris, intentaque brachia remis ; 
Intenti exspectant signum, exsultantiaque haurit 
Corda pavor pulsans laudumque arrecta cupido. 
Inde ubi clara dedit sonitum tuba, finibus omnes, 
Haud mora, prosiluere suis ; ferit aethera clamor 140 

Nauticus, adductis spumant freta versa lacertis. 
Infindunt pariter sulcos, torumque dehiscit 
Convulsum remis rostrisque tridentibus aequor. 
Non tam praecipites bijugo certamine campum 
Corripuere ruuntque effusi carcere currus, 14s 

Nee sic immissis aurigae undantia lora 
Concussere jugis pronique in verbera pendent. 
Turn plausu fremituque virum studiisque faventum 
Consonat omne nemus, vocemque inclusa volutant 
Litora, pulsati colles clamore resultant. 150 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 201 

Effugit ante alios primisque elabitur undis 

Turbam inter fremitumque Gyas ; quern deinde Cloanthus 

Consequitur, melior remis, sed pondere pinus 

Tarda tenet. Post hos aequo discrimine Pristis 

Centaurusque locum tendunt superare priorem ; 155 

Et nunc Pristis habet, nunc victam praeterit ingens 

Centaurus, nunc una ambae junctisque feruntur 

Frontibus et longa sulcant vada salsa carina. 

Jamque propinquabant scopulo metamque tenebant, 

Quum princeps medioque Gyas in gurgite victor 160 

Rectorem navis compellat voce Menoeten : 

Quo tantum mihi dexter abis ? hue dirige gressum ; 

Litus ama, et laevas stringat sine palmula cautes ; 

Altum alii teneant. Dixit ; sed caeca Menoetes 

Saxa timens proram pelagi detorquet ad undas. 165 

Quo diversus abis ? iterum, Pete saxa, Menoete ! 

Cum clamore Gyas revocabat \ et ecce Cloanthum 

Respicit instantem tergo, et propiora tenentem. 

Ille inter navemque Gyae scopulosque sonantes 

Radit iter laevum interior, subitoque priorem 170 

Praeterit et metis tenet aequora tuta relictis. 

Turn vero exarsit juveni dolor ossibus ingens, 

Nee lacrimis caruere genae, segnemque Menoeten, 

Oblitus decorisque sui sociumque salutis, 

In mare praecipitem puppi deturbat ab alta ; 175 

Ipse gubernaclo rector subit, ipse magister, 

Hortaturque viros, clavumque ad litora torquet. 

At gravis, ut fundo vix tandem redditus imo est, 

Jam senior madidaque rluens in veste Menoetes 

Summa petit scopuli siccaque in rupe resedit. 180 

Ilium et labentem Teucri et risefe natantem, 

Et salsos rident revomentem pectore fluctus. 

Hie laeta extremis spes est accensa duobus, 

Sergesto Mnestheique, Gyan superare morantem. 

Sergestus capit ante locum scopuloque propinquat, 185 

Nee tota tamen ille prior praeeunte carina ; 



202 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Parte prior ; partem rostro premit aemula Pristis. 

At media socios incedens nave per ipsos 

Hortatur Mnestheus : Nunc, nunc insurgite remis, 

Hectorei socii, Trojae quos sorte suprema 190 

Delegi comites ; nunc illas promite vires, 

Nunc animos, quibus in Gaetulis Syrtibus usi 

Ionioque mari Maleaeque sequacibus undis. 

Non jam prima peto Mnestheus, neque vincere certo ; 

Quamquam o ! — Sed superent, quibus hoc, Neptune, dedisti; 

Extremos pudeat rediisse ; hoc vincite, cives, 196 

Et prohibete nefas. Olli certamine summo 

Procumbunt ; vastis tremit ictibus aerea puppis, 

Subtrahiturque solum ; turn creber anhelitus artus 

Aridaque ora quatit ; sudor fluit undique rivis. 200 

Attulit ipse viris optatum casus honorem. 

Nam que furens animi dum proram ad saxa suburguet 

Interior spatioque subit Sergestus iniquo, 

Infelix saxis in procurrentibus haesit. 

Concussae cautes, et acuto in murice remi 205 

Obnixi crepuere, illisaque prora pependit. 

Consurgunt nautae et magno clamore morantur, 

Ferratasque trudes et acuta cuspide contos 

Expediunt, fractosque legunt in gurgite remos. 

At laetus Mnestheus successuque acrior ipso 210 

Agmine remorum celeri ventisque vocatis 

Prona petit maria et pelago decurrit aperto. 

Qualis spelunca subito commota columba, 

Cui domus et dulces latebroso in pumice nidi, 

Fertur in arva volans, plausumque exterrita pennis 215 

Dat tecto ingentem, mox aere lapsa quieto 

Radit iter liquidum, celeres neque commovet alas : 

Sic Mnestheus, sic ipsa fuga secat ultima Pristis 

Aequora, sic illam fert impetus ipse volantem. 

Et primum in scopulo luctantem deserit alto 220 

Sergestum brevibusque vadis frustraque vocantem 

Auxilia et fractis discentem currere remis. 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 203 

Inde Gyan ipsamque ingenti mole Chimaeram 

Consequitur ; cedit, quoniam spoliata magistro est. 

Solus jamque ipso superest in fine Cloanthus ; 225 

Quern petit, et summis adnixus viribus urguet. 

Turn vero ingeminat clamor, cunctique sequentem 

Instigant studiis, resonatque fragoribus aether. 

Hi proprium decus et partum indignantur honorem 

Ni teneant, vitamque volunt pro laude pacisci • 230 

Hos successus alit : possunt, quia posse videntur. 

Et fors aequatis cepissent praemia rostris, 

Ni palmas ponto tendens utrasque Cloanthus 

Fudissetque preces, divosque in vota vocasset : 

Di, quibus imperium pelagi est, quorum aequora curro, 235 f 

Vobis laetus ego hoc candentem in litore taurum 

Constituam ante aras, voti reus, extaque salsos 

Porriciam in fluctus et vina liquentia fundam. 

Dixit, eumque imis sub fluctibus audiit omnis 

Nereidum Phorcique chorus Panopeaque virgo, 240 

Et pater ipse manu magna Portunus euntem 

Impulit ; ilia Noto citius volucrique sagitta 

Ad terram fugit, et portu se condidit alto. 

Turn satus Anchisa, cunctis ex more vocatis, 

Victorem magna praeconis voce Cloanthum 245 

Declarat, viridique advelat tempora lauro ; 

Muneraque in naves ternos optare juvencos 

Vinaque et argenti magnum dat ferre talentum. 

Ipsis praecipuos ductoribus addit honores : 

Victori chlamydem auratam, quam plurima circum 250 

Purpura Maeandro duplici Meliboea cucurrit, 

Intextusque puer frondosa regius Ida 

Veloces jaculo cervos cursuque fatigat, 

Acer, anhelanti similis, quern praepes ab Ida 

Sublimem pedibus rapuit Jovis armiger uncis ; 255 

Longaevi palmas nequidquam ad sidera tendunt 

Custodes, saevitque canum latratus in auras. 

At qui deinde locum tenuit virtute secundum, 



204 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Levibus huic hamis consertam auroque trilicem 

Loricam, quam Demoleo detraxerat ipse 260 

Victor apud rapidum Simoenta sub Ilio alto, 

Donat habere viro, decus et tutamen in armis. 

Vix illam famuli Phegeus Sagarisque ferebant 

Multiplicem, connixi humeris ; indutus at olim 

Demoleos cursu palantes Troas agebat. 265 

Tertia dona facit geminos ex aere lebetas, 

Cymbiaque argento perfecta atque aspera signis. 

Jamque adeo donati omnes opibusque superbi 

Puniceis ibant evincti tempora taeniis, 

Quum saevo e scopulo multa vix arte revulsus, 270 

Amissis remis atque ordine debilis uno, 

Irrisam sine honore ratem Sergestus agebat. 

Qualis saepe viae deprensus in aggere serpens, 

Aerea quern obliquum rota transiit, aut gravis ictu 

Seminecem liquit saxo lacerumque viator, 275 

Nequidquam longos fugiens dat corpore tortus, 

Parte ferox, ardensque oculis, et sibila colla 

Arduus attollens ; pars vulnere clauda retentat 

Nexantem nodis seque in sua membra plicantem : 

Tali remigio navis se tarda movebat ; 280 

Vela facit tamen, et velis subit ostia plenis. 

Sergestum Aeneas promisso munere donat, 

Servatam ob navem laetus sociosque reductos. 

Olli serva datur, operum haud ignara Minervae, 

Cressa genus, Pholoe, geminique sub ubere nati. 285 

Hoc pius Aeneas misso certamine tendit 
Gramineum in campum, quern collibus undique curvis 
Cingebant silvae, mediaque in valle theatri 
Circus erat ; quo se multis cum milibus heros 
Consessu medium tulit exstructoque resedit. 290 

Hie, qui forte velint rapido contendere cursu, 
Invitat pretiis animos, et praemia ponit. 
Undique conveniunt Teucri mixtique Sicani, 
Nisus et Euryalus primi, 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 205 

Euryalus forma insignis viridique juventa, 295 

Nisus amore pio pueri ; quos deinde secutus 

Regius egregia Priami de stirpe Diores ; 

Hunc Salius simul et Patron, quorum alter Acarnan, 

Alter ab Arcadio Tegeaeae sanguine gentis ; 

Turn duo Trinacrii juvenes, Helymus Panopesque, 300 

Adsueti silvis, comites senioris Acestae ; 

Multi praeterea, quos fama obscura recondit. 

Aeneas quibus in mediis sic deinde locutus : 

Accipite haec animis, laetasque advertite mentes : 

Nemo ex hoc numero mihi non donatus abibit. 305 

Gnosia bina dabo levato lucida ferro 

Spicula caelatamque argento ferre bipennem ; 

Omnibus hie erit unus honos. Tres praemia primi 

Accipient, flavaque caput nectentur oliva. 

Primus equum phaleris insignem victor habeto ; 310 

Alter Amazoniam pharetram plenamque sagittis 

Threiciis, lato quam circumplectitur auro 

Balteus, et tereti subnectit fibula gemma ; 

Tertius Argolica hac galea contentus abito. 

Haec ubi dicta, locum capiunt, signoque repente 315 

Corripiunt spatia audito, limenque relinquunt, 

EfTusi nimbo similes, simul ultima signant. 

Primus abit longeque ante omnia corpora Nisus 

Emicat, et ventis et fulminis ocior alis ; 

Proximus huic, longo sed proximus intervallo, 320 

Insequitur Salius ; spatio post deinde relicto 

Tertius Euryalus ; 

Euryalumque Helymus sequitur ; quo deinde sub ipso 

Ecce volat calcemque terit jam calce Diores, 

Incumbens humero ; spatia et si plura supersint, 325 

Transeat elapsus prior, ambiguumque relinquat 

Jamque fere spatio extremo fessique sub ipsam 

Finem adventabant, levi quum sanguine Nisus 

Labitur infelix, caesis ut forte juvencis 

Fusus humum viridesque super madefecerat herbas. 330 



206 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Hie juvenis jam victor ovans vestigia presso 

Haud tenuit titubata solo, sed pronus in ipso 

Concidit immundoque fimo sacroque cruore, 

Non tamen Euryali, non ille oblitus amorum ; 

Nam sese opposuit Salio per lubrica surgens ; 335 

Ille autem spissa jacuit revolutus arena. 

Emicat Euryalus, et munere victor amici 

Prima tenet, plausuque volat fremituque secundo. 

Post Helymus subit, et nunc tertia palma Diores. 

Hie totum caveae consessum ingentis et ora 340 

Prima patrum magnis Salius clamoribus implet, 

Ereptumque dolo reddi sibi poscit honorem. 

Tutatur favor Euryalum, lacrimaeque decorae, 

Gratior et pulchro veniens in corpore virtus. 

Adjuvat et magna proclamat voce Diores, 345 

Qui subiit palmae, frustraque ad praemia venit 

Ultima, si primi Salio reddantur honores. 

Turn pater Aeneas, Vestra, inquit, munera vobis 

Certa manent, pueri, et palmam movet ordine nemo ; 

Me liceat casus miserari insontis amici. 350 

Sic fatus tergum Gaetuli immane leonis 

Dat Salio, villis onerosum atque unguibus aureis. 

Hie Nisus, Si tanta, inquit, sunt praemia victis, 

Et te lapsorum miseret, quae munera Niso 

Digna dabis, primam merui qui laude coronam, 355 

Ni me, quae Salium, fortuna inimica tulisset ? 

Et simul his dictis faciem ostentabat et udo 

Turpia membra fimo. Risit pater optimus olli, 

Et clipeum efferri jussit, Didymaonis artes, 

Neptuni sacro Danais de poste refixum. 360 

Hoc juvenem egregium praestanti munere donat 

Post, ubi confecti cursus, et dona peregit : 
Nunc, si cui virtus animusque in pectore praesens, 
Adsit, et evinctis attollat brachia palmis. 
Sic ait et geminum pugnae proponit honorem, 365 

Victori velatum auro vittisque juvencum, 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 207 

Ensem atque insignem galeam solatia victo. 

Nee mora ; continuo vastis cum viribus effert 

Ora Dares, magnoque virum se murmure tollit ; 

Solus qui Paridem solitus contendere contra, 370 

Idemque ad tumulum, quo maximus occubat Hector, 

Victorem Buten, immani corpore qui se 

Bebrycia veniens Amyci de gente ferebat, 

Perculit et fulva moribundum extendit arena. 

Talis prima Dares caput altum in proelia tollit, 375 

Ostenditque humeros latos, alternaque jactat 

Brachia protendens, et verberat ictibus auras. 

Quaeritur huic alius \ nee quisquam ex agmine tanto 

Audet adire virum manibusque inducere caestus. 

Ergo alacris, cunctosque putans excedere palma, 380 

Aeneae stetit ante pedes, nee plura moratus 

Turn laeva taurum cornu tenet, atque ita fatur : 

Nate dea, si nemo audet se credere pugnae, 

Quae finis standi ? quo me decet usque teneri ? 

Ducere dona jube. Cuncti simul ore fremebant 385 

Dardanidae, reddique viro promissa jubebant. 

Hie gravis Entellum dictis castigat Acestes, 

Proximus ut viridante toro consederat herbae : 

Entelle, heroum quondam fortissime frustra, 

Tantane tarn patiens nullo certamine tolli 390 

Dona sines ? Ubi nunc nobis deus ille magister 

Nequidquam memoratus Eryx ? Ubi fama per omnem 

Trinacriam, et spolia ilia tuis pendentia tectis ? 

Ille sub haec : Non laudis amor, nee gloria cessit 

Pulsa metu ; sed enim gelidus tardante senecta 395 

Sanguis hebet, frigentque effetae in corpore vires. 

Si mihi, quae quondam fuerat, quaque improbus iste 

Exsultat fidens, si nunc foret ilia juventas, 

Haud equidem pretio inductus pulchroque juvenco 

Venissem, nee dona moror. Sic deinde locutus 400 

In medium geminos immani pondere caestus 

Projecit, quibus acer Eryx in proelia suetus 



208 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Ferre manum duroque intendere brachia tergo. 

Obstupuere animi : tantorum ing'entia septem 

Terga bourn plumbo insuto ferroque rigebant. 405 

Ante omnis stupet ipse Dares, longeque recusat ; 

Magnanimusque Anchisiades et pondus et ipsa 

Hue illuc vinclorum immensa volumina versat. 

Turn senior tales referebat pectore voces : 

Quid, si quis caestus ipsius et Herculis arma 4 io 

Vidisset tristemque hoc ipso in litore pugnam ? 

Haec germanus Eryx quondam tuus arma gerebat ; — 

Sanguine cernis adhuc sparsoque infecta cerebro — 

His magnum Alciden contra stetit ; his ego suetus, 

Dum melior vires sanguis dabat, aemula necdum 415 

Temporibus geminis canebat sparsa senectus. 

Sed si nostra Dares haec Troius arma recusat, 

Idque pio sedet Aeneae, probat auctor Acestes, 

Aequemus pugnas. Erycis tibi terga remitto ; 

Solve metus ; et tu Trojanos exue caestus. 420 

Haec fatus duplicem ex humeris rejecit amictum, 

Et magnos membrorum artus, magna ossa lacertosque 

Exuit, atque ingens media consistit arena. 

Turn satus Anchisa caestus pater extulit aequos, 

Et paribus palmas amborum innexuit armis. 425 

Constitit in digitos extemplo arrectus uterque, 

Brachiaque ad superas interritus extulit auras. 

Abduxere retro longe capita ardua ab ictu, 

Immiscentque manus manibus, pugnamque lacessunt. 

Ille pedum melior motu, fretusque juventa, 430 

Hie membris et mole valens ; sed tarda trementi 

Genua labant, vastos quatit aeger anhelitus artus. 

Multa viri nequidquam inter se vulnera jactant, 

Multa cavo lateri ingeminant et pectore vastos 

Dant sonitus, erratque aures et tempora circum 435 

Crebra manus, duro crepitant sub vulnere malae. 

Stat gravis Entellus nisuque immotus eodem, 

Corpore tela modo atque oculis vigilantibus exit. 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 209 

Ille, velut celsam oppugnat qui molibus urbem, 

Aut montana sedet circum castella sub armis, uo 

Nunc hos, nunc illos aditus, omnemque pererrat 

Arte locum, et variis adsultibus irritus urguet. 

Ostendit dextram insurgens Entellus et alte 

Extulit : ille ictum venientem a vertice velox 

Praevidit, celerique elapsus corpore cessit : 445 

Entellus vires in ventum effudit, et ultro 

Ipse gravis graviterque ad terram pondere vasto 

Concidit : ut quondam cava concidit aut Erymantho, 

Aut Ida in magna, radicibus eruta pinus. 

Consurgunt studiis Teucri et Trinacria pubes ; 450 

It clamor coelo, primusque accurrit Acestes, 

Aequaevumque ab humo miserans attollit amicum. 

At non tardatus casu neque territus heros 

Acrior ad pugnam redit, ac vim suscitat ira. 

Turn pudor incendit vires et conscia virtus, 455 

Praecipitemque Daren ardens agit aequore toto, 

Nunc dextra ingeminans ictus, nunc ille sinistra ; 

Nee mora, nee requies : quam multa grandine nimbi 

Culminibus crepitant, sic densis ictibus heros 

Creber utraque manu pulsat versatque Dareta. 4 6o 

Turn pater Aeneas procedere longius iras 

Et saevire animis Entellum haud passus acerbis ; 

Sed fmem imposuit pugnae, fessumque Dareta 

Eripuit, mulcens dictis, ac talia fatur : 

Infelix, quae tanta animum dementia cepit ? 465 

Non vires alias conversaque numina sentis ? 

Cede deo. Dixitque et proelia voce diremit. 

Ast ilium fidi aequales, genua aegra trahentem, 

Jactantemque utroque caput, crassumque cruorem 

Ore ejectantem mixtosque in sanguine dentes, 470 

Ducunt ad naves ; galeamque ensemque vocati 

Accipiunt ; palmam Entello taurumque relinquunt. 

Hie victor, superans animis tauroque superbus : 

Nate dea, vosque haec, inquit, cognoscite, Teucri, 



210 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Et mihi quae fuerint, juvenali in corpore vires, 475 

Et qua servetis revocatum a morte Dareta. 

Dixit, et adversi contra stetit ora juvenci, 

Qui donum adstabat pugnae, durosque reducta 

Libravit dextra media inter cornua caestus, 

Arduus, effractoque illisit in ossa cerebro. 480 

Sternitur exanimisque tremens procumbit humi bos. 

Hie super tales efifundit pectore voces : 

Hanc tibi, Eryx, meliorem animam pro morte Daretis 

Persolvo ; hie victor caestus artemque repono. 

Protinus Aeneas celeri certare sagitta 48s 

Invitat qui forte velint, et praemia ponit, 
Ingentique manu malum de nave Seresti 
Erigit, et volucrem trajecto in fune columbam, 
Quo tendant ferrum, malo suspendit ab alto. 
Convenere viri, dejectamque aerea sortem 490 

Accepit galea ; et primus clamore secundo 
Hyrtacidae ante omnes exit locus Hippocoontis ; 
Quern modo navali Mnestheus certamine victor 
Consequitur, viridi Mnestheus evinctus oliva. 
Tertius Eurytion, tuus, o clarissime, frater, 495 

Pandare, qui quondam, jussus confundere foedus, 
In medios telum torsisti primus Achivos. 
Extremus galeaque ima subsedit Acestes, 
Ausus et ipse manu juvenum tentare laborem. 
Turn validis flexos incurvant viribus arcus 500 

Pro se quisque viri, et depromunt tela pharetris. 
Primaque per coelum nervo stridente sagitta 
Hyrtacidae juvenis volucres diverberat auras ; 
Et venit, adversique infigitur arbore mali. 
Intremuit malus, timuitque exterrita pennis 505 

Ales, et ingenti sonuerunt omnia plausu. 
Post acer Mnestheus adducto constitit arcu, 
Alta petens, pariterque oculos telumque tetendit 
Ast ipsam miserandus avem contingere ferro 
Non valuit; nodos et vincula linea rupit, 510 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 211 

Quis innexa pedem malo pendebat ab alto ; 

Ilia notos atque atra volans in nubila fugit. 

Turn rapidus, jamdudum arcu contenta parato 

Tela tenens, fratrem Eurytion in vota vocavit, 

Jam vacuo laetam coelo speculates, et alis 515 

Plaudentem nigra figit sub nube columbam. 

Decidit exanimis, vitamque reliquit in astris 

Aetheriis, fixamque refert delapsa sagittam. 

Amissa solus palma superabat Acestes ; 

Qui tamen aerias telum contendit in auras, 520 

Ostentans artemque pater arcumque sonantem. 

Hie oculis subitum objicitur magnoque futurum 

Augurio monstrum ; docuit post exitus ingens, 

Seraque terrinci cecinerunt omina vates. 

Namque volans liquidis in nubibus arsit arundo, 525 

Signavitque viam flammis, tenuesque recessit 

Consumpta in ventos \ coelo ceu saepe refixa 

Transcurrunt crinemque volantia sidera ducunt 

Attonitis haesere animis, Superosque precati 

Trinacrii Teucrique viri ; nee maximus omen 530 

Abnuit Aeneas \ sed laetum amplexus Acesten 

Muneribus cumulat magnis, ac talia fatur : 

Sume, pater j nam te voluit rex magnus Olympi 

Talibus auspiciis exsortem ducere honorem. 

Ipsius Anchisae longaevi hoc munus habebis, 53s 

Cratera impressum signis, quern Thracius olim 

Anchisae genitori in magno munere Cisseus 

Ferre sui dederat monumentum et pignus amoris. 

Sic fatus cingit viridanti tempora lauro, 

Et primum ante omnes victorem appellat Acesten. 54° 

Nee bonus Eurytion praelato invidit honori, 

Quamvis solus avem coelo dejecit ab alto. 

Proximus ingreditur donis, qui vincula rupit, 

Extremus, volucri qui fixit arundine malum. 

At pater Aeneas, nondum certamine misso, 545 

Custodem ad sese comitemque impubis Iuli 



212 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Epytiden vocat, et fidam sic fatur ad aurem : 

Vade age, et Ascanio, si jam puerile paratum 

Agmen habet secum, cursusque instruxit equorum, 

Ducat avo turmas, et sese ostendat in armis, 55° 

Die, ait. Ipse omnem longo decedere circo 

Infusum populum, et campos jubet esse patentes. 

Incedunt pueri, pariterque ante ora parentum 

Frenatis lucent in equis, quos omnis euntes 

Trinacriae mirata fremit Trojaeque juventus. 555 

Omnibus in morem tonsa coma pressa corona ; 

Cornea bina ferunt praefixa hastilia ferro ; 

Pars leves humero pharetras ; it pectore summo 

Flexilis obtorti per collum circulus auri. 

Tres equitum numero turmae, ternique vagantur 560 

Ductores ; pueri bis seni quemque secuti 

Agmine partito fulgent paribusque magistris. 

Una acies juvenum, ducit quam parvus ovantem 

Nomen avi referens Priamus, tua clara, Polite, 

Progenies, auctura Italos ; quern Thracius albis 565 

Portat equus bicolor maculis, vestigia primi 

Alba pedis frontemque ostentans arduus albam. 

Alter Atys, genus unde Atii duxere Latini, 

Parvus Atys, pueroque puer dilectus Iulo. 

Extremus, formaque ante omnes pulcher, lulus 57° 

Sidonio est invectus equo, quem Candida Dido 

Esse sui dederat monumentum et pignus amoris. 

Cetera Trinacriis pubes senioris Acestae 

Fertur equis. 

Excipiunt plausu pavidos, gaudentque tuentes 575 

Dardanidae, veterumque agnoscunt ora parentum. 

Postquam omnem laeti consessum oculosque suorum 

Lustravere in equis, signum clamore paratis 

Epytides longe dedit insonuitque flagello. 

Olli discurrere pares, atque agmina terni 580 

Diductis solvere choris, rursusque vocati 

Convertere vias infestaque tela tulere. 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 213 

Inde alios ineunt cursus aliosque recursus 

Adversi spatiis, alternosque orbibus orbes 

Impediunt, pugnaeque cient simulacra sub armis ; 585 

Et nunc terga fuga nudant, nunc spicula vertunt 

Infensi, facta pariter nunc pace feruntur. 

Ut quondam Creta fertur Labyrinthus in alta 

Parietibus textum caecis iter, ancipitemque 

Mille viis habuisse dolum, qua signa sequendi 590 

Falleret indeprensus et irremeabilis error ; 

Haud alio Teucrum nati vestigia cursu 

Impediunt, texuntque fugas et proelia ludo, 

Delphinum similes, qui per maria humida nando 

Carpathium Libycumque secant [luduntque per undas]. 59s 

Hunc morem cursus atque haec certamina primus 

Ascanius, Longam muris cum cingeret Albam, 

Retulit et priscos docuit celebrare Latinos, 

Quo puer ipse modo, secum quo Troia pubes ; 

Albani docuere suos ; hinc maxima porro 600 

Accepit Roma, et patrium servavit honorem ; 

Trojaque nunc pueri, Trojanum dicitur agmen. 

Hac celebrata tenus sancto certamina patri. 

Hie primum Fortuna fidem mutata novavit. 
Dum variis tumulo referunt sollemnia ludis, 605 

Irim de coelo misit Saturnia Juno 
Iliacam ad classem, ventosque adspirat eunti, 
Multa movens, necdum antiquum saturata dolorem. 
Ilia, viam celerans per mille coloribus arcum, 
Nulli visa cito decurrit tramite virgo. 610 

Conspicit ingentem concursum, et litora lustrat, 
Desertosque videt portus classemque relictam. 
At procul in sola secretae Troades acta 
Amissum Anchisen flebant, cunctaeque profundum 
Pontum adspectabant flentes. Heu tot vada fessis 615 

Et tantum superesse maris ! vox omnibus una. 
Urbem orant ; taedet pelagi perferre laborem. 
Ergo inter medias sese haud ignara nocendi 



214 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Conjicit, et faciemque deae vestemque reponit ; 

Fit Beroe, Ismarii conjux longaeva Dorycli, 620 

Cui genus et quondam nomen natique fuissent ; 

Ac sic Dardanidum mediam se matribus infert : 

O miserae, quas non manus, inquit, Achaica bello 

Traxerit ad letum patriae sub moenibus ! O gens 

Infelix, cui te exitio Fortuna reservat ? 625 

Septima post Trojae exscidium jam vertitur aestas, 

Quum freta, quum terras omnes, tot inhospita saxa 

Sideraque emensae ferimur, dum per mare magnum 

Italiam sequimur fugientem, et volvimur undis. 

Hie Erycis fines fraterni, atque hospes Acestes : 630 

Quis prohibet muros jacere et dare civibus urbem ? 

O patria et rapti nequidquam ex hoste Penates, 

Nullane jam Trojae dicentur moenia? Nusquam 

Hectoreos amnes, Xanthum et Simoenta, videbo ? 

Quin agite et mecum infaustas exurite puppes. 635 

Nam mihi Cassandrae per somnum vatis imago 

Ardentes dare visa faces : Hie quaerite Trojam ; 

Hie domus est, inquit, vobis. Jam tempus agi res, 

Nee tantis mora prodigiis. En quatuor arae 

Neptuno ; deus ipse faces animumque ministrat. 6 4 o 

Haec memorans prima infensum vi corripit ignem, 

Sublataque procul dextra connixa coruscat, 

Et jacit. Arrectae mentes stupefactaque corda 

Iliadum. Hie una e multis, quae maxima natu, 

Pyrgo, tot Priami natorum regia nutrix : 6 45 

Non Beroe' vobis, non haec Rhoeteia, matres, 

Est Dorycli conjux ; divini signa decoris 

Ardentesque notate oculos ; qui spiritus illi, 

Qui vultus, vocisque sonus, vel gressus eunti. 

Ipsa egomet dudum Beroen digressa reliqui 650 

Aegram, indignantem, tali quod sola careret 

Munere, nee meritos Anchisae inferret honores. 

Haec effata. 

At matres primo ancipites, oculisque malignis 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 215 

Ambiguae spectare rates miserum inter amorem 6 55 

Praesentis terrae fatisque vocantia regna : 

Quum dea se paribus per coelum sustulit alis 

Ingentemque fuga secuit sub nubibus arcum. 

Turn vero attonitae monstris actaeque furore 

Conclamant, rapiuntque focis penetralibus ignem ; 660 

Pars spoliant aras, frondem ac virgulta facesque 

Conjiciunt. Furit immissis Vulcanus habenis 

Transtra per et remos et pictas abiete puppes. 

Nuntius Anchisae ad tumulum cuneosque theatri 

Incensas perfert naves Eumelus, et ipsi 665 

Respiciunt atram in nimbo volitare favillam. 

Primus et Ascanius, cursus ut laetus equestres 

Ducebat, sic acer equo turbata petivit 

Castra, nee exanimes possunt retinere magistri. 

Quis furor iste novus ? Quo nunc, quo tenditis, inquit, 670 

Heu miserae cives ? Non hostem inimicaque castra 

Argivum, vestras spes uritis. En, ego vester 

Ascanius ! — galeam ante pedes projecit inanem, 

Qua ludo indutus belli simulacra ciebat. 

Accelerat simul Aeneas, simul agmina Teucrum. 675 

Ast illae diversa metu per litora passim 

Diffugiunt, silvasque et sicubi concava furtim 

Saxa petunt j piget incepti lucisque, suosque 

Mutatae agnoscunt, excussaque pectore Juno est. 

Sed non idcirco flammae atque incendia vires 680 

Indomitas posuere ; udo sub robore vivit 

Stuppa vomens tardum fumum, lentusque carinas 

Est vapor, et toto descendit corpore pestis, 

Nee vires heroum infusaque flumina prosunt. 

Turn pius Aeneas humeris abscindere vestem, 685 

Auxilioque vocare deos, et tendere palmas : 

Juppiter omnipotens, si nondum exosus ad unum 

Trojanos, si quid pietas antiqua labores 

Respicit humanos, da flammam evadere classi 

Nunc, Pater, et tenues Teucrum res eripe leto. 690 



2l6 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Vel tu, quoa superest, infesto fulmine morti, 
Si mereor, demitte, tuaque hie obrue dextra. 
Vix haec ediderat, quum effusis imbribus atra 
Tempestas sine more furit, tonitruque tremescunt 
Ardua terrarum et campi ■ ruit aethere toto 6 95 

Turbidus imber aqua densisque nigerrimus austris ; 
Implenturque super puppes ; semiusta madescunt 
Robora ; restinctus donee vapor omnis, et omnes, 
Quatuor amissis, servatae a peste carinae. 

At pater Aeneas, casu concussus acerbo, 7 oo 

Nunc hue ingentes, nunc illuc pectore curas 
Mutabat versans, . Siculisne resideret arvis, 
Oblitus fatorum, Italasne capesseret oras. 
Turn senior Nautes, unum Tritonia Pallas 
Quem docuit multaque insignem reddidit arte — 705 

Haec responsa dabat, vel quae portenderet ira 
Magna deum, vel quae fatorum posceret ordo — 
Isque his Aenean solatus vocibus infit : 
Nate dea, quo fata trahunt retrahuntque, sequamur ; 
Quidquid erit, superanda omnis fortuna ferendo est. 710 
Est tibi Dardanius divinae stirpis Acestes : 
Hunc cape consiliis socium et conjunge volentem ; 
Huic trade, amissis superant qui navibus, et quos 
Pertaesum magni incepti rerumque tuarum est ; 
Longaevosque senes ac fessas aequore matres, 715 

Et quidquid tecum invalidum metuensque pericli est, 
Delige, et his habeant terris sine moenia fessi ; 
Urbem appellabunt permisso nomine Acestam. 

Talibus incensus dictis senioris amici, 
Turn vero in curas animo diducitur omnes. 720 

Et Nox atra polum bigis subvecta tenebat : 
Visa dehinc coelo facies delapsa parentis 
Anchisae subito tales effundere voces : 
Nate, mihi vita quondam, dum vita manebat, 
Care magis, nate, Iliacis exercite fatis, 725 

Imperio Jovis hue venio, qui classibus ignem 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 217 

Depulit, et coelo tandem miseratus ab alto est. 

Consiliis pare, quae nunc pulcherrima Nautes 

Dat senior ; lectos juvenes, fortissima corda, 

Defer in Italiam ; gens dura atque aspera cultu 730 

Debellanda tibi Latio est. Ditis tamen ante 

Infernas accede domos, et Averna per alta 

Congressus pete, nate, meos. Non me impia namque 

Tartara habent tristesve umbrae, sed amoena piorum 

Concilia Elysiumque colo. Hue casta Sibylla 735 

Nigrarum multo pecudum te sanguine ducet. 

Turn genus omne tuum, et quae dentur moenia, disces. 

J am que vale ; torquet medios Nox humida cursus, 

Et me saevus equis Oriens afflavit anhelis. 

Dixerat, et tenues fugit, ceu fumus, in auras. 74 o 

Aeneas, Quo deinde ruis ? quo proripis ? inquit, 

Quem fugis ? aut quis te nostris complexibus arcet ? 

Haec memorans cinerem et sopitos suscitat ignes, 

Pergameumque Larem et canae penetralia Vestae 

Farre pio et plena supplex veneratur acerra. 745 

Extemplo socios primumque arcessit Acesten, 
Et Jovis imperium et cari praecepta parentis 
Edocet, et quae nunc animo sententia constet. 
Haud mora consiliis, nee jussa recusat Acestes. 
Transcribunt urbi matres, populumque volentem 750 

Deponunt, animos nil magnae laudis egentes. 
Ipsi transtra novant, flammisque ambesa reponunt 
Robora navigiis, aptant remosque rudentesque, 
Exigui numero, sed bello vivida virtus. 
Interea Aeneas urbem designat aratro 755 

Sortiturque domos ; hoc Ilium et haec loca Trojam 
Esse jubet. Gaudet regno Trojanus Acestes, 
Indicitque forum et patribus dat jura vocatis. 
Turn vicina astris Erycino in vertice sedes 
Fundatur Veneri Idaliae, tumuloque sacerdos 760 

Ac lucus late sacer additur Anchiseo. 

Jamque dies epulata novem gens omnis, et aris 



2l8 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Factus honos : placidi straverunt aequora venti, 

Creber et adspirans rursus vocat Auster in altum. 

Exoritur procurva ingens per litora fletus ; 765 

Complexi inter se noctemque diemque morantur. 

Ipsae jam matres, ipsi, quibus aspera quondam 

Visa maris facies et non tolerabile nomen, 

Ire volunt, omnemque fugae perferre laborem. 

Quos bonus Aeneas dictis solatur amicis, 770 

Et consanguineo lacrimans commendat Acestae. 

Tres Eryci vitulos et Tempestatibus agnam 

Caedere deinde jubet, solvique ex ordine funem. 

Ipse, caput tonsae foliis evinctus olivae, 

Stans procul in prora pateram tenet, extaque salsos 775 

Porricit in fluctus ac vina liquentia fundit. 

Prosequitur surgens a puppi ventus euntes. 

Certatim socii feriunt mare et aequora verrunt. 

At Venus interea Neptunum exercita curis 
Alloquitur, talesque effundit pectore questus : 780 

Junonis gravis ira nee exsaturabile pectus 
Cogunt me, Neptune, preces descendere in omnes ; 
Quam nee longa dies, pietas nee mitigat ulla, 
Nee Jovis imperio fatisque infracta quiescit. 
Non media de gente Phrygum exedisse nefandis 785 

Urbem odiis satis est, nee poenam traxe per omnem : 
Reliquias Trojae, cineres atque ossa peremptae 
Insequitur. Caussas tanti sciat ilia furoris. 
Ipse mihi nuper Libycis tu testis in undis 
Quam molem subito excierit : maria omnia coelo 790 

Miscuit, Aeoliis nequidquam freta procellis, 
In regnis hoc ausa tuis. 
Per scelus ecce etiam Trojanis matribus actis 
Exussit foede puppes, et classe subegit 
Amissa socios ignotae linquere terrae. 79s 

Quod superest, oro, liceat dare tuta per undas 
Vela tibi, liceat Laurentem attingere Thybrim, 
Si concessa peto, si dant ea moenia Parcae. 



AENEIDOS LIB. V. 2ig 

Turn Saturnius haec domitor maris edidit alti : 

Fas omne est, Cytherea, meis te fidere regnis, 800 

Unde genus ducis. Merui quoque ; saepe furores 

Compressi et rabiem tantam coelique marisque. 

Nee minor in terris, Xanthum Simoentaque testor, 

Aeneae mihi cura tui. Quum Troia Achilles 

Exanimata sequens impingeret agmina muris, 805 

Milia multa daret leto, gemerentque repleti 

Amnes, nee reperire viam atque evolvere posset 

In mare se Xanthus, Pelidae tunc ego forti 

Congressum Aenean nee dis nee viribus aequis 

Nube cava rapui, cuperem quum vertere ab imo 810 

Structa meis manibus perjurae moenia Trojae. 

Nunc quoque mens eadem perstat mihi • pelle timorem. 

Tutus, quos optas, portus accedet Averni. 

Unus erit tantum, amissum quern gurgite quaeres ; 

Unum pro multis dabitur caput 815 

His ubi laeta deae permulsit pectora dictis, 

Jungit equos auro Genitor, spumantiaque addit 

Frena feris, manibusque omnes effundit habenas. 

Caeruleo per summa levis volat aequora curru ; 

Subsidunt undae, tumidumque sub axe tonanti 820 

Stemitur aequor aquis, fugiunt vasto aethere nimbi. 

Turn variae comitum facies, immania cete, 

Et senior Glauci chorus, Inousque Palaemon, 

Tritonesque citi, Phorcique exercitus omnis ; 

Laeva tenet Thetis, et Melite, Panopeaque virgo, 825 

Nesaee, Spioque, Thaliaque, Cymodoceque. 

Hie patris Aeneae suspensam blanda vicissim 
Gaudia pertentant mentem ; jubet ocius omnes 
Attolli malos, intendi brachia velis. 

Una omnes fecere pedem, pariterque sinistros, 830 

Nunc dextros solvere sinus ; una ardua torquent 
Cornua detorquentque ; ferunt sua flamina classem. 
Princeps ante omnes densum Palinurus agebat 
Agmen ; ad hunc alii cursum contendere jussi. 



2 20 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Jamque fere mediam coeli Nox humida metam 8 35 

Contigerat ; placida laxabant membra quiete 

Sub remis fusi per dura sedilia nautae : 

Cum levis aetheriis delapsus Somnus ab astris 

Aera dimovit tenebrosum et dispulit umbras, 

Te, Palinure, petens, tibi somnia tristia portans 8 4 o 

Insonti ; puppique deus consedit in alta, 

Phorbanti similis, funditque has ore loquelas : 

Iaside Palinure, ferunt ipsa aequora classem ; 

Aequatae spirant aurae ; datur hora quieti. 

Pone caput, fessosque oculos furare labori. 845 

Ipse ego paulisper pro te tua munera inibo. 

Cui vix attollens Palinurus lumina fatur : 

Mene salis placidi vultum fluctusque quietos 

Ignorare jubes ? mene huic confidere monstro ? 

Aenean credam quid enim fallacibus auris 8 S o 

Et coeli toties deceptus fraude sereni ? 

Talia dicta dabat, clavumque affixus et haerens 

Nusquam amittebat, oculosque sub astra tenebat. 

Ecce deus ramum Lethaeo rore madentem 

Vique soporatum Stygia super utraque quassat 8 55 

Tempora, cunctantique natantia lumina solvit. 

Vix primos inopina quies laxaverat artus : 

Et superincumbens cum puppis parte revulsa 

Cumque gubernaclo liquidas projecit in undas 

Praecipitem ac socios nequidquam saepe vocantem ; 860 

Ipse volans tenues se sustulit ales ad auras. 

Currit iter tutum non secius aequore classis, 

Promissisque patris Neptuni interrita fertur. 

Jamque adeo scopulos Sirenum advecta subibat, 

Difficiles quondam multorumque ossibus albos, 865 

Turn rauca adsiduo longe sale saxa sonabant : 

Quum pater amisso fluitantem errare magistro 

Sensit, et ipse ratem nocturnis rexit in undis, 

Multa gemens, casuque animum concussus amici : 

O nimium coelo et pelago confise sereno, 870 

Nudus in ignota, Palinure, jacebis arena. 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 221 



LIBER VI. 

Sic fatur lacrimans, classique immittit habenas, 

Et tandem Euboicis Cumarum allabitur oris. 

Obvertunt pelago proras j turn dente tenaci 

Ancora fundabat naves, et litora curvae 

Praetexunt puppes. Juvenum manus emicat ardens 5 

Litus in Hesperium ; quaerit pars semina flammae 

Abstrusa in venis silicis, pars densa ferarum 

Tecta rapit silvas, inventaque flumina monstrat. 

At pius Aeneas arces, quibus altus Apollo 

Praesidet, horrendaeque procul secreta Sibyllae, 10 

Antrum immane, petit, magnam cui mentem animumque 

Delius inspirat vates aperitque futura. 

Jam subeunt Triviae lucos atque aurea tecta. 

Daedalus, at fama est, fugiens Minoia regna, 
Praepetibus pennis ausus se credere coelo, 15 

Insuetum per iter gelidas enavit ad Arctos, 
Chalcidicaque levis tandem super adstitit arce. 
Redditus his primum terris, tibi, Phoebe, sacravit 
Remigium alarum, posuitque immania templa. 
In foribus letum Androgeo ; turn pendere poenas 20 

Cecropidae jussi — miserum ! — septena quot annis 
Corpora natorum ; stat ductis sortibus urna. 
Contra elata mari respondet Gnosia tellus : 
Hie crudelis amor tauri, suppostaque furto 
Pasiphae, mixtumque genus prolesque biformis 25 

Minotaurus inest, Veneris monumenta nefandae ; 
Hie labor ille domus et inextricabilis error ; 
Magnum reginae sed enim miseratus amorem 
Daedalus, ipse dolos tecti ambagesque resolvit, 
Caeca regens filo vestigia. Tu quoque magnam 30 

Partem opere in tanto, sineret dolor, Icare, haberes. 
Bis conatus erat casus effingere in auro ; 



222 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Bis patriae cecidere manus. Quin protinus omii 

Perlegerent oculis, ni jam praemissus Achates 

Afforet atque una Phoebi Triviaeque sacerdos, 

Deiphobe Glauci, fatur quae talia regi : 

Non hoc ista sibi tempus spectacula poscit ; 

Nunc grege de intacto septem mactare juvencos 

Praestiterit, totidem lectas de more bidentes. 

Talibus affata Aenean — nee sacra morantur 40 

Jussa viri — Teucros vocat alta in templa sacerdos. 

Excisum Euboicae latus ingens rupis in antrum, 
Quo lati ducunt aditus centum, ostia centum ; 
Unde ruunt totidem voces, responsa Sibyllae. 
Ventum erat ad limen, quum virgo, Poscere fata 45 

Tempus, ait ; deus, ecce, deus ! Cui talia fanti 
Ante fores subito non vultus, non color unus, 
Non comptae mansere comae ; sed pectus anhelum, 
Et rabie fera corda tument ; majorque videri, 
Nee mortale sonans, afflata est numine quando 5° 

Jam propiore dei. Cessas in vota precesque 
Tros, ait, Aenea, cessas ? Neque enim ante dehiscent 
Attonitae magna ora domus. Et talia fata 
Conticuit. Gelidus Teucris per dura cucurrit 
Ossa tremor, funditque preces rex pectore ab imo : 55 

Phoebe, graves Trojae semper miserate labores, 
Dardana qui Paridis direxti tela manusque 
Corpus in Aeacidae, magnas obeuntia terras 
Tot maria intravi duce te penitusque repostas 
Massylum gentes praetentaque Syrtibus arva, 60 

Jam tandem Italiae fugientis prendimus oras ; 
Hac Trojana tenus fuerit fortuna secuta. 
Vos quoque Pergameae jam fas est parcere genti, 
Dique deaeque omnes, quibus obstitit Ilium et ingens 
Gloria Dardaniae. Tuque, o sanctissima vates, 65 

Praescia venturi, da — non indebita posco 
Regna meis fatis — Latio considere Teucros 
Errantesque deos agitataque numina Trojae. 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 223 

Turn Phoebo et Triviae solido de marmore templum 
Instituam, festosque dies de nomine Phoebi. 70 

Te quoque magna manent regnis penetralia nostris. 
Hie ego namque tuas sortes arcanaque fata, 
Dicta meae genti, ponam, lectosque sacrabo, 
Alma, viros. Foliis tantum ne carmina manda, 
Ne turbata volent rapidis ludibria ventis ; 75 

Ipsa canas oro. Finem dedit ore loquendi. 

At, Phoebi nondum patiens, immanis in antro 
Bacchatur vates, magnum si pectore possit 
Excussisse deum ; tanto magis ille fatigat 
Os rabidum, fera corda domans, flngitque premendo. 80 
Ostia jam que domus patuere ingentia centum 
Sponte sua, vatisque ferunt responsa per auras : 
O tandem magnis pelagi defuncte periclis ! 
Sed terrae graviora manent. In regna Lavini 
Dardanidae venient ; mitte hanc de pectore curam ; 85 

Sed non et venisse volent. Bella, horrida bella, 
Et Thybrim multo spumantem sanguine cerno. 
Non Simois tibi, nee Xanthus, nee Dorica castra 
Defuerint ; alius Latio jam partus Achilles, 
Natus et ipse dea ; nee Teucris addita Juno 90 

Usquam aberit ; quum tu supplex in rebus egenis 
Quas gentis Italum aut quas non oraveris urbes ! 
Caussa mali tanti conjux iterum hospita Teucris 
Externique iterum thalami. 

Tu ne cede malis, sed contra audentior ito, 95 

Quam tua te Fortuna sinet. Via prima salutis, 
Quod minime reris, Graia pandetur ab urbe. 

Talibus ex adyto dictis Cumaea Sibylla 
Horrendas canit ambages antroque remugit, 
Obscuris vera involvens : ea frena furenti 100 

Concutit, et stimulos sub pectore vertit Apollo. 
Ut primum cessit furor et raVjida ora quierunt, 
Incipit Aeneas heros : Non ulla laborum, 
O virgo, nova mi facies inopinave surgit ; 



2 24 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Omnia praecepi atque animo mecum ante peregi. 105 

Unum oro : quando hie inferni janua regis 

Dicitur et tenebrosa palus Acheronte refuse-, 

Ire ad conspectum cari genitoris et ora 

Contingat ; doceas iter et sacra ostia pandas. 

Ilium ego per flammas et mille sequentia tela no 

Eripui his humeris, medioque ex hoste recepi ; 

I lie meum comitatus iter maria omnia mecum 

Atque omnes pelagique minas coelique ferebat, 

Invalidus, vires ultra sortemque senectae. 

Quin, ut te supplex peterem et tua limina adirem, «s 

Idem orans mandata dabat. Natique patrisque, 

Alma, precor, miserere — potes namque omnia, nee te 

Nequidquam lucis Hecate praefecit Avernis — 

Si potuit Manes arcessere conjugis Orpheus, 

Threicia fretus cithara fidibusque canoris, 120 

Si fratrem Pollux alterna morte redemit, 

Itque reditque viam toties. Quid Thesea, magnum 

Quid memorem Alciden ? et mi genus ab Jove summo. 

Talibus orabat dictis, arasque tenebat, 
Cum sic orsa loqui vates : Sate sanguine divum, 125 

Tros Anchisiade, facilis descensus Averno; 
Noctes atque dies patet atri janua Ditis ; 
Sed revocare gradum superasque evadere ad auras, 
Hoc opus, hie labor est. Pauci, quos aequus amavit 
Juppiter, aut ardens evexit ad aethera virtus, 130 

Dis geniti potuere. Tenent media omnia silvae, 
Cocytosque sinu labens circumvenit atro. 
Quod si tantus amor menti, si tanta cupido est, 
Bis Stygios innare lacus, bis nigra videre 
Tartara, et insano juvat indulgere labori, 135 

Accipe, quae peragenda prius. Latet arbore opaca 
Aureus et foliis et lento vimine ramus, 
Junoni infernae dictus sacer ; liunc tegit omnis 
Lucus et obscuris claudunt convallibus umbrae. 
Sed non ante datur telluris operta subire, 14° 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 225 

Auricomos quam qui decerpserit arbore fetus. 

Hoc sibi pulchra suum ferri Proserpina munus 

Instituit. Primo avulso non deficit alter 

Aureus, et simili frondescit virga metallo. 

Ergo alte vestiga oculis, et rite repertum 145 

Carpe manu ; namque ipse volens facilisque sequetur, 

Si te fata vocant ; aliter non viribus ullis 

Vincere, nee duro poteris convellere ferro. 

Praeterea jacet exanimum tibi corpus amici — 

Heu nescis — totamque incestat funere classem, 150 

Dum consulta petis nostroque in limine pendes. 

Sedibus hunc refer ante suis et conde sepulchro. 

Due nigras pecudes • ea prima piacula sunto. 

Sic demum lucos Stygis et regna invia vivis 

Adspicies. Dixit, pressoque obmutuit ore. 155 

Aeneas maesto defixus lumina vultu 
Ingreditur, linquens antrum, caecosque volutat 
Eventus animo secum. Cui fidus Achates 
It comes, et paribus curis vestigia figit 
Multa inter sese vario sermone serebant, 160 

Quern socium exanimem vates, quod corpus humandum 
Diceret. Atque illi Misenum in litore sicco, 
Ut venere, vident indigna morte peremptum, 
Misenum Aeoliden, quo non praestantior alter 
Aere ciere viros, Martemque accendere cantu. 165 

Hectoris hie magni fuerat comes, Hectora circum 
Et lituo pugnas insignis obibat et hasta. 
Postquam ilium vita victor spoliavit Achilles, 
Dardanio Aeneae sese fortissimus heros 
Addiderat socium, non inferiora secutus. 170 

Sed turn, forte cava dum personat aequora concha, 
Demens, et cantu vocat in certamina divos, 
Aemulus exceptum Triton, si credere dignum est, 
Inter saxa virum spumosa immerserat unda. 
Ergo omnes magno circum clamore fremebant, 175 

Praecipue pius Aeneas. Turn jussa Sibyllae, 



226 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Haud mora, festinant flentes, aramque sepulchri 
Congerere arboribus coeloque educere certant. 
Itur in antiquam silvam, stabula alta ferarum, 
Procumbunt piceae, sonat.icta securibus ilex, 180 

Fraxineaeque trabes cuneis et fissile robur 
Scinditur, advolvunt ingentes montibus ornos. 
Nee non Aeneas opera inter talia primus 
Hortatur socios, paribusque accingitur armis. 
Atque haec ipse suo tristi cum corde volutat, 185 

Adspectans silvam immensam, et sic voce precatur : 
Si nunc se nobis ille aureus arbore ramus 
Ostendat nemore in tanto ! quando omnia vere 
Heu nimium de te vates, Misene, locuta est 
Vix ea fatus erat, geminae quum forte columbae 190 

Ipsa sub ora viri coeli venere volantes, 
Et viridi sedere solo. Turn maximus heros 
Maternas agnoscit aves, laetusque precatur : 
Este duces, o, si qua via est, cursumque per auras 
Dirigite in lucos, ubi pinguem dives opacat 195 

Ramus humum. Tuque, o, dubiis ne defice rebus, 
Diva parens.' Sic effatus vestigia pressit, 
Observans, quae signa ferant, quo tendere pergant. 
Pascentes illae tantum prodire volando, 
Quantum acie possent oculi servare sequentum. 200 

Inde ubi venere ad fauces graveolentis Averni, 
Tollunt se celeres, liquidumque per aera lapsae 
Sedibus optatis geminae super arbore sidunt, 
Discolor unde auri per ramos aura refulsit. 
Quale solet silvis brumali frigore viscum 205 

Fronde virere nova, quod non sua seminat arbos, 
Et croceo fetu teretes circumdare truncos : 
Talis erat species auri frondentis opaca 
Ilice, sic leni crepitabat bractea vento. 
Corripit Aeneas extemplo avidusque refringit 210 

Cunctantem, et vatis portat sub tecta Sibyllae. 
Nee minus interea Misenum in litore Teucri 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 227 

Flebant, et cineri ingrato suprema ferebant. 

Principio pinguem taedis et robore secto 

Ingentem struxere pyram, cui frondibus atris • 2x5 

Intexunt latera, et ferales ante cupressos 

Constituunt, decorantque super fulgentibus armis. 

Pars calidos latices et aena undantia flammis 

Expediunt, corpusque lavant frigentis et unguunt. 

Fit gemitus. Turn membra toro derleta reponunt, 220 

Purpureasque super vestes, velamina nota, 

Conjiciunt. Pars ingenti subiere feretro, 

Triste ministerium, et subjectam more parentum 

Aversi tenuere facem. Congesta cremantur 

Turea dona, dapes, fuso crateres olivo. 225 

Postquam collapsi cineres et flamma quievit, 

Reliquias vino et bibulam lavere favillam, 

Ossaque lecta cado texit Corynaeus aeno. 

Idem ter socios pura circumtulit unda, 

Spargens rore levi et ramo felicis olivae, 230 

Lustravitque viros, dixitque novissima verba. 

At pius Aeneas ingenti mole sepulchrum 

Imponit, suaque arma viro remumque tubamque, 

Monte sub aerio, qui nunc Misenus ab illo 

Dicitur, aeternumque tenet per saecula nomen. 235 

His actis propere exsequitur praecepta Sibyllae. 
Spelunca alta fuit vastoque immanis hiatu, 
Scrupea, tuta lacu nigro nemorumque tenebris, 
Quam super haud ullae poterant impune volantes 
Tendere iter pennis : talis sese halitus atris 240 

Faucibus effundens supera ad convexa ferebat : 
[Unde locum Graii dixerunt nomine Aornon.] 
Quatuor hie primum nigrantes terga juvencos 
Constituit frontique invergit vina sacerdos, 
Et summas carpens media inter cornua setas 245 

Ignibus imponit sacris, libamina prima, 
Voce vocans Hecaten, Coeloque Ereboque potentem. 
Supponunt alii cultros, tepidumque cruorem 



2 28 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Suscipiunt pateris. Ipse atri velleris agnam 

Aeneas matri Eumenidum magnaeque sorori 250 

Ense ferit, sterilemque tibi, Proserpina, vaccam. 

Turn Stygio regi nocturnas inchoat aras, 

Et solida imponit taurorum viscera flammis, 

Pingue super oleum infundens ardentibus extis. 

Ecce autem, primi sub lumina solis et ortus 255 

Sub pedibus mugire solum et juga coepta moveri 

Silvarum, visaeque canes ululare per umbram, 

Adventante dea. Procul o, procul este, profani, 

Conclamat vates, totoque absistite luco ; 

Tuque invade viam, vaginaque eripe ferrum ; 260 

Nunc animis opus, Aenea, nunc pectore firmo. 

Tantum effata > furens antro se immisit aperto ; 

Ille ducem haud timidis vadentem passibus aequat. 

Di, quibus imperium est animarum, Umbraeque silentes 
Et Chaos, et Phlegethon, loca nocte tacentia late, 265 

Sit mihi fas audita loqui ; sit numine vestro 
Pandere res alta terra et caligine mersas. 

Ibant obscuri sola sub nocte per umbram, 
Perque domos Ditis vacuas et inania regna : 
Quale per incertam lunam sub luce maligna 270 

Est iter in silvis, ubi coelum condidit umbra 
Juppiter, et rebus nox abstulit atra colorem. 
Vestibulum ante ipsum primisque in faucibus Orci 
Luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia Curae ; 
Pallentesque habitant Morbi, tristisque Senectus, 275 

Et Metus, et malesuada Fames, ac turpis Egestas, 
Terribiles visu formae, Letumque, Labosque ; 
Turn consanguineus Leti Sopor, et mala mentis 
Gaudia, mortiferumque adverso in limine Bellum, 
Ferreique Eumenidum thalami, et Discordia demens, 280 
Vipereum crinem vittis innexa cruentis. 

In medio ramos annosaque brachia pandit 
Ulmus opaca, ingens, quam sedem Somnia vulgo 
Vana tenere ferunt, foliisque sub omnibus haerent. 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 229 

Multaque praeterea variarum monstra ferarum 285 

Centauri in foribus stabulant Scyllaeque biformes 
Et centumgeminus Briareus ac belua Lernae, 
Horrendum stridens, flammisque armata Chimaera, 
Gorgones Harpyiaeque et forma tricorporis umbrae. 
Corripit hie subita trepidus formidine ferrum 290 

Aeneas, strictamque aciem venientibus offert, 
Et, ni docta comes tenues sine corpore vitas 
Admoneat volitare cava sub imagine formae, 
Irruat, et frustra ferro diverberet umbras. 

Hinc via, Tartarei quae fert Acherontis ad undas. 395 
Turbidus hie caeno vastaque voragine gurges 
Aestuat atque omnem Cocyto eructat arenam. 
Portitor has horrendus aquas et flumina servat 
Terribili squalore Charon, cui plurima mento 
Canities inculta jacet, stant lumina flamma, 300 

Sordidus ex humeris nodo dependet amictus. 
Ipse ratem conto subigit, velisque ministrat, 
Et ferruginea subvectat corpora cymba, 
Jam senior, sed cruda deo viridisque senectus. 
Hue omnis turba ad ripas effusa ruebat, 305 

Matres atque viri, defunctaque corpora vita 
Magnanimum heroum, pueri innuptaeque puellae, 
Impositique rogis juvenes ante ora parentum : 
Quam multa in silvis autumni frigore primo 
Lapsa cadunt folia, aut ad terram gurgite ab alto 310 

Quam multae glomerantur aves, ubi frigidus annus 
Trans pontum fugat et terris immittit apricis. 
Stabant orantes primi transmittere cursum, 
Tendebantque manus ripae ulterioris amore. 
Navita sed tristis nunc hos nunc accipit illos, 315 

Ast alios longe submotos arcet arena. 
Aeneas miratus enim motusque tumultu 
Die, ait, o virgo, quid vult concursus ad amnem ? 
Quidve petunt animae ? vel quo discrimine ripas 
Hae linquunt, illae remis vada livida verrunt ? 320 



230 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Olli sic breviter fata est longaeva sacerdos : 

Anchisa generate, deum certissima proles, 

Cocyti stagna alta vides Stygiamque paludem, 

Di cujus jurare timent et fallere numen. 

Haec omnis, quam cernis, inops inhumataque turba est ; 325 

Portitor ille Charon ; hi, quos vehit unda, sepulti. 

Nee ripas datur horrendas et rauca fluenta 

Transportare prius, quam sedibus ossa quierunt. 

Centum errant annos volitantque haec litora circum ; 

Turn demum admissi stagna exoptata revisunt. 33 o 

Constitit Anchisa satus et vestigia pressit, 

Multa putans, sortemque animo miseratus iniquam. 

Cernit ibi maestos et mortis honore carentes 

Leucaspim et Lyciae ductorem classis Oronten, 

Quos simul, a Troja ventosa per aequora vectos, 335 

Obruit Auster, aqua involvens navemque virosque. 

Ecce gubernator sese Palinurus agebat, 
Qui Libyco nuper cursu, dum sidera servat, 
Exciderat puppi mediis effusus in undis. 
Hunc ubi vix multa maestum cognovit in umbra, 340 

Sic prior alloquitur : Quis te, Palinure, deorum 
Eripuit nobis, medioque sub aequore mersit ? 
Die age. Namque mihi, fallax haud ante repertus, ' 
Hoc uno responso animum delusit Apollo, 
Qui fore te ponto incolumem, finesque canebat 34s 

Venturum Ausonios. En haec promissa fides est ? 
Ille autem : Neque te Phoebi cortina fefellit, 
Dux Anchisiade, nee me deus aequore mersit. 
Namque gubernaclum multa vi forte revulsum, 
Cui datus haerebam custos cursusque regebam, 350 

Praecipitans traxi mecum. Maria aspera juro 
Non ullum pro me tantum cepisse timorem, 
Quam tua ne, spoliata armis, excussa magistro, 
Deficeret tantis navis surgentibus undis. 
Tres Notus hibernas immensa per aequora noctes 355 

Vexit me violentus aqua ; vix lumine quarto 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 23 I 

Prospexi Italiam summa sublimis ab unda. 

Paulatim adnabam terrae ; jam tuta tenebam, 

Ni gens crudelis madida cum veste gravatum 

Prensantemque uncis manibus capita aspera montis 360 

Ferro invasisset, praedamque ignara putasset. 

Nunc me fluctus habet, versantque in litore venti. 

Quod te per coeli jucundum lumen et auras, 

Per genitorem oro, per spes surgentis Iuli, 

Eripe me his, invicte, malis : aut tu mihi terram 365 

Injice, namque potes, portusque require Velinos ; 

Aut tu, si qua via est, si quam tibi diva creatrix 

Ostendit — neque enim, credo, sine numine divum 

Flumina tanta paras Stygiamque innare paludem — 

Da dextram misero, et tecum me tolle per undas, 370 

Sedibus ut saltern placidis in morte quiescam. 

Talia fatus erat, coepit quum talia vates : 

Unde haec, o Palinure, tibi tarn dira cupido ? 

Tu Stygias inhumatus aquas amnemque severum 

Eumenidum adspicies, ripamve injussus adibis ? 375 

Desine fata deum flecti sperare precando. 

Sed cape dicta memor, duri solatia casus. 

Nam tua fmitimi, longe lateque per urbes 

Prodigiis acti coelestibus, ossa piabunt, 

Et statuent tumulum, et tumulo sollemnia mittent, 380 

Aeternumque locus Palinuri nomen habebit. 

His dictis curae emotae, pulsusque parumper 

Corde dolor tristi ; gaudet cognomine terra. 

Ergo iter inceptum peragunt fluvioque propin quant. 
Navita quos jam inde ut Stygia prospexit ab unda 385 

Per taciturn nemus ire pedemque advertere ripae, 
Sic prior aggreditur dictis, atque increpat ultro : 
Quisquis es, armatus qui nostra ad flumina tendis, 
Fare age, quid venias, jam istinc, et comprime gressum. 
Umbrarum hie locus est, Somni Noctisque soporae ; 390 
Corpora viva nefas Stygia vectare carina. 
Nee vero Alciden me sum laetatus euntem 



232 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Accepisse lacu, nee Thesea Pirithoumque, 

Dis quamquam geniti atque invicti viribus essent. 

Tartareum ille manu custodem in vincla petivit, 395 

Ipsius a solio regis,- traxitque trementem ; 

Hi dominam Ditis thalamo deducere adorti. 

Quae contra breviter fata est Amphrysia vates : 

Nullae hie insidiae tales ; absiste moveri ; 

Nee vim tela ferunt ; licet ingens janitor antro 400 

Aeternum latrans exsangues terreat umbras, 

Casta licet patrui servet Proserpina limen. 

Troius Aeneas, pietate insignis et armis, 

Ad genitorem imas Erebi descendit ad umbras. 

Si te nulla movet tantae pietatis imago, 405 

At ramum hunc — aperit ramum, qui veste latebat — 

Agnoscas. Tumida ex ira turn corda residunt. 

Nee plura his. Ille admirans venerabile donum 

Fatalis virgae, longo post tempore visum, 

Caeruleam advertit puppim, ripaeque propinquat. 410 

Inde alias animas, quae per juga longa sedebant, 

Deturbat, laxatque foros ; simul accipit alveo 

Ingentem Aenean. Gemuit sub pondere cymba 

Sutilis, et multam accepit rimosa paludem. 

Tandem trans fluvium incolumis vatemque virumque 415 

Informi limo glaucaque exponit in ulva. 

Cerberus haec ingens latratu regna trifauci 
Personat, adverso recubans immanis in antro. 
Cui vates, horrere videns jam colla colubris, 
Melle soporatam et medicatis frugibus offam 420 

Objicit. Ille fame rabida tria guttura pandens 
Corripit objectam, atque immania terga resolvit 
Fusus humi, totoque ingens extenditur antro. 
Occupat Aeneas aditum custode sepulto, 
Evaditque celer ripam irremeabilis undae. 425 

Continuo auditae voces vagitus et ingens 
Infantumque animae flentes in limine primo, 
Quos dulcis vitae exsortes et ab ubere raptos 



AEXEIDOS LIB. VI. 233 

Abstulit atra dies et fun ere mersit acerbo. 

Hos juxta falso damnati crimine mortis. 430 

Nee vero hae sine so'rte datae, sine judice, sedes : 

Quaesitor Minos urnam movet ; ille silentum 

Conciliumque vocat vitasque et crimina discit. 

Proxima deinde tenent maesti loca, qui sibi letum 

Insontes peperere manu, lucemque perosi 435 

Projecere animas. Quam vellent aethere in alto 

Nunc et pauperiem et duros perferre labores ! 

Fas obstat, tristique palus inamabilis unda 

Alligat, et novies Styx interfusa coercet. 

Nee procul hinc partem fusi monstrantur in omnem 440 

Lugentes campi ; sic illos nomine dicunt. 

Hie, quos durus amor crudeli tabe peredit, 

Secreti celant calles et myrtea circum 

Silva tegit ; curae non ipsa in morte relinquunt. 

His Phaedram Procrimque locis, maestamque Eriphylen, 445 

Crudelis nati monstrantem vulnera, cernit, 

Evadnenque et Pasiphaen ; his Laodamia 

It comes, et juvenis quondam, nunc femina, Caeneus, 

Rursus et in veterem fato revoluta nguram. 

Inter quas Phoenissa recens a vulnere Dido 45 o 

Errabat silva in magna ; quam Troius heros 

Ut primum juxta stetit agnovitque per umbram 

Obscuram, qualem primo qui surgere mense 

Aut videt, aut vidisse putat per nubila lunam, 

Demisit lacrimas, dulcique affatus amore est : 455 

Infelix Dido, verus mihi nuntius ergo 

Venerat exstinctam, ferroque extrema secutam ? 

Funeris heu tibi caussa fui ? Per sidera juro, 

Per superos et si qua rides tellure sub ima est, 

Invitus, regina, tuo de litore cessi. 460 

Sed me jussa deum, quae nunc has ire per umbras, 

Per loca senta situ cogunt noctemque profundam, 

Imperiis egere suis j nee credere quivi 

Hunc tantum tibi me discessu ferre dolorem. 



234 p - VIRGILII MARONIS 

Siste gradum, teque adspectu ne subtrahe nostro. 465 

Quern fugis ? extremum fato, quod te alloquor, hoc est. 

Talibus Aeneas ardentem et torva tuentem 

Lenibat dictis animum, lacrimasque ciebat 

Ilia solo fixos oculos aversa tenebat, 

Nee magis incepto vultum sermone movetur, 470 

Quam si dura silex aut stet Marpesia cautes. 

Tandem corripuit sese, atque inimica refugit 

In nemus umbriferum, conjux ubi pristinus illi 

Respondet curis aequatque Sychaeus amorem. 

Nee minus Aeneas, casu concussus iniquo, 475 

Prosequitur lacrimans longe, et miseratur euntem, 

Inde datum molitur iter. Jamque arva tenebant 
Ultima, quae bello clari secreta frequentant. 
Hie illi occurrit Tydeus, hie inclutus armis 
Parthenopaeus et Adrasti pallentis imago ; 480 

Hie multum fleti ad superos belloque caduci 
Dardanidae, quos ille omnes longo ordine cernens 
Ingemuit, Glaucumque Medontaque Thersilochumque, 
Tres Antenoridas, Cererique sacrum Polyphoeten, 
Idaeumque, etiam currus, etiam arma tenentem. 485 

Circumstant animae dextra laevaque frequentes. 
Nee vidisse semel satis est ; juvat usque morari, 
Et conferre gradum, et veniendi discere caussas. 
At Danaum proceres Agamemnoniaeque phalanges 
Ut videre virum fulgentiaque arma per umbras, 490 

Ingenti trepidare metu ; pars vertere terga, 
Ceu quondam petiere rates ; pars tollere vocem 
Exiguam : inceptus clamor frustratur hiantes. 

Atque hie Priamiden laniatum corpore toto 
Deiphobum videt et lacerum crudeliter ora, 495 

Ora manusque ambas, populataque tempora raptis 
Auribus, et truncas inhonesto vulnere nares. 
Vix adeo agnovit pavitantem et dira tegentem 
Supplicia, et notis compellat vocibus ultro : 
Deiphobe armipotens, genus alto a sanguine Teucri, 500 






AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 235 

Quis tarn crudeles optavit sumere poenas ? 

Cui tantum de te licuit ? Mihi fama suprema 

Nocte tulit fessum vasta te caede Pelasgum 

Procubuisse super confusae stragis acervum. 

Tunc egomet tumulum Rhoeteo in litore inanem 505 

Constitui, et magna Manes ter voce vocavi. 

Nomen et arma locum servant ; te, amice, nequivi 

Conspicere et patria decedens ponere terra. 

Ad quae Priamides : Nihil o tibi amice relictum ; 

Omnia Deiphobo solvisti et funeris umbris. 510 

Sed me fata mea et scelus exitiale Lacaenae 

His mersere malis ; ilia haec monumenta reliquit. 

Namque ut supremam falsa inter gaudia noctem 

Egerimus, nosti ; et nimium meminisse necesse est. 

Quum fatalis equus saltu super ardua venit 515 

Pergama et armatum peditem gravis attulit alvo, 

Ilia, chorum simulans, evantes orgia circum 

Ducebat Phrygias ; flammam media ipsa tenebat 

Ingentem, et summa Danaos ex arce vocabat. 

Turn me, confectum curis somnoque gravatum, 520 

Infelix habuit thalamus, pressitque jacentem 

Dulcis et alta quies placidaeque simillima morti. 

Egregia interea conjux arma omnia tectis 

Amovet, et fidum capiti subduxerat ensem ; 

Intra tecta vocat Menelaum, et limina pandit, 525 

Scilicet id magnum sperans fore munus amanti, 

Et famam exstingui veterum sic posse malorum. 

Quid moror ? Irrumpunt thalamo ; comes additur una 

Hortator scelerum Aeolides. Di, talia Graiis 

Instaurate, pio si poenas ore reposco. 530 

Sed te qui vivum casus, age, fare vicissim, 

Attulerint. Pelagine venis erroribus actus, 

An monitu divum ? An quae te fortuna fatigat, 

Ut tristes sine sole domos, loca turbida, adires ? 

Hac vice sermonum roseis Aurora quadrigis 535 

Jam medium aetherio cursu trajecerat axem j 



236 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Et fors omne datum traherent per talia tempus ; 

Sed comes admonuit breviterque affata Sibylla est : 

Nox ruit, Aenea ; nos flendo ducimus horas. 

Hie locus est, partes ubi se via findit in ambas : 540 

Dextera quae Ditis magni sub moenia tendit, 

Hac iter Elysium nobis ; at laeva malorum 

Exercet poenas, et ad impia Tartara mittit. 

Deiphobus contra : Ne saevi, magna sacerdos ; 

Discedam, explebo numerum, reddarque tenebris. 545 

I decus, i, nostrum ; melioribus utere fatis. 

Tantum effatus, et in verbo vestigia torsit 

Respicit Aeneas subito, et sub rupe sinistra 
Moenia lata videt, triplici circumdata muro, 
Quae rapidus flammis ambit torrentibus amnis, 550 

Tartareus Phlegethon, torquetque sonantia saxa. 
Porta adversa, ingens, solidoque adamante columnae, 
Vis ut nulla virum, non ipsi exscindere bello 
Coelicolae valeant ; stat ferrea turris ad auras, 
Tisiphoneque sedens, palla succincta cruenta, 555 

Vestibulum exsomnis servat noctesque diesque. 
Hinc exaudiri gemitus, et saeva sonare 
Verbera ; turn stridor ferri, tractaeque catenae. 
Constitit Aeneas, strepituque exterritus haesit. 
Quae scelerum facies ? o virgo, effare ; quibusve 560 

Urguentur poenis ? quis tantus plangor ad auras ? 
Turn vates sic orsa loqui : Dux inclute Teucrum, 
Nulli fas casto sceleratum insistere limen ; 
Sed me quum lucis Hecate praefecit Avernis, 
Ipsa deum poenas docuit, perque omnia duxit. 565 

Gnosius haec Rhadamanthus habet, durissima regna, 
Castigatque auditque dolos, subigitque fateri, 
Quae quis apud superos, furto laetatus inani, 
Distulit in seram commissa piacula mortem. 
Continuo sontes ultrix accincta flagello 570 

Tisiphone quatit insultans, torvosque sinistra 
Intentans angues vocat agmina saeva sororum. . 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 237 

Turn demum horrisono stridentes cardine sacrae 

Panduntur portae. Cernis, custodia qualis 

Vestibulo sedeat ? facies quae limina servet ? 575 

Quinquaginta atris immanis hiatibus Hydra 

Saevior intus habet sedem. Turn Tartarus ipse 

Bis patet in praeceps tantum tenditque sub umbras, 

Quantus ad aetherium coeli suspectus Olympum. 

Hie genus antiquum Terrae, Titania pubes, 580 

Fulmine dejecti fundo volvuntur in imo. 

Hie et Aloidas geminos immania vidi 

Corpora, qui manibus magnum rescindere coelum 

Aggressi, superisque Jovem detrudere regnis. 

Vidi et crudeles dantem Salmonea poenas, 585 

Dum flammas Jovis et sonitus imitatur Olympi. 

Quatuor hie invectus equis et lampada quassans 

Per Graium populos mediaeque per Elidis urbem 

Ibat ovans, divumque sibi poscebat honorem, 

Demens ! qui nimbos et non imitabile fulmen 590 

Aere et cornipedum pulsu simularet equorum. 

At pater omnipotens densa inter nubila telum 

Contorsit, non ille faces nee fumea taedis 

Lumina, praecipitemque immani turbine adegit. 

Nee non et Tityon, Terrae omniparenris alumnum, 59s 

Cernere erat, per tota novem cui jugera corpus 

Porrigitur, rostroque immanis vultur obunco 

Inmortale jecur tondens fecundaque poenis 

Viscera rimaturque epulis habitatque sub alto 

Pectore, nee fibris requies datur ulla renatis. 600 

Quid memorem Lapithas, Ixiona Pirithoumque ? 

Quos super atra silex jam jam lapsura cadentique 

Imminet adsimilis ; lucent genialibus altis 

Aurea fulcra toris, epulaeque ante ora paratae 

Regifico luxu ; Furiarum maxima juxta 605 

Accubat, et manibus prohibet contingere mensas, 

Exsurgitque facem attollens, atque intonat ore. 

Hie quibus invisi fratres, dum vita manebat, 



238 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Pulsatusve parens, et fraus innexa clienti, 

Aut qui divitiis soli incubuere repertis, 610 

Nee partem posuere suis, quae maxuma turba est, 

Quique ob adulterium caesi, quique arma secuti 

Impia nee veriti dominorum fallere dextras, 

Inclusi poenam exspectant. Ne quaere doceri, 

Quam poenam, aut quae forma viros fortunave mersit. 615 

Saxum ingens volvunt alii, radiisque rotarum 

Districti pendent ; sedet, aeternumque sedebit, 

Infelix Theseus ; Phlegyasque miserrimus omnes 

Admonet et magna testatur voce per umbras : 

Discite justitiam moniti, et non temnere divos. 620 

Vendidit hie auro patriam, dominumque potentem 

Imposuit ; fixit leges pretio atque refixit ; 

Hie thalamum invasit natae vetitosque hymenaeos ; 

Ausi omnes immane nefas, ausoque potiti. 

Non mihi si linguae centum sint oraque centum, 625 

Ferrea vox, omnes scelerum comprendere formas, 

Omnia poenarum percurrere nomina possim. 

Haec ubi dicta dedit Phoebi longaeva sacerdos : 
Sed jam age, carpe viam et susceptum perfice munus ; 
Acceleremus, ait ; Cyclopum educta caminis. 630 

Moenia conspicio atque adverso fornice portas, 
Haec ubi nos praecepta jubent deponere dona. 
Dixerat, et pariter, gressi per opaca viarum, 
Corripiunt spatium medium, foribusque propinquant. 
Occupat Aeneas aditum, corpusque recenti 635 

Spargit aqua, ramumque adverso in limine flgit. 

His demum exactis, perfecto munere divae, 
Devenere locos laetos et amoena virecta 
Fortunatorum nemorum sedesque beatas. 
Largior hie campos aether et lumine vestit 6 4 c 

Purpureo, solemque suum, sua sidera norunt. 
Pars in gramineis exercent membra palaestris, 
Contendunt ludo et fulva luctantur arena ; 
Pars pedibus plaudunt choreas et carmina dicunt 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 239 

Nec non Threicius longa cum veste sacerdos 645 

Obloquitur numeris septem discrimina vocum, 

Jam que eadem digitis, jam pectine pulsat eburno. 

Hie genus antiquum Teucri, pulcherrima proles, 

Magnanimi heroes, nati melioribus annis, 

Ilusque Assaracusque et Trojae Dardanus auctor. 650 

Arma procul currusque virum miratur inanes. 

Stant terra defixae hastae, passim que soluti 

Per campum pascuntur equi. Quae gratia curruum 

Armorumque fuit vivis, quae cura nitentes 

Pascere equos, eadem sequitur tellure repostos. 655 

Conspicit, ecce, alios dextra laevaque per herbam 

Vescentes laetumque choro Paeana canentes 

Inter odoratum lauri nemus, unde superne 

Plurimus Eridani per silvam volvitur amnis. 

Hie manus ob patriam pugnando vulnera passi, 660 

Quique sacerdotes casti, dum vita manebat, 

Quique pii vates et Phoebo digna locuti, 

Inventas aut qui vitam excoluere per artes, 

Quique sui memores alios fecere merendo ; 

Omnibus his nivea cinguntur tempora vitta. 665 

Quos circumfusos sic est affata Sibylla, 

Musaeum ante omnes ; medium nam plurima rurba 

Hunc habet, atque humeris exstantem suspicit altis : 

Dicite, felices animae, tuque, optime vates, 

Quae regio Anchisen, quis habet locus ? illius ergo 670 

Venimus et magnos Erebi tranavimus amnes. 

Atque huic responsum paucis ita reddidit heros : 

Nulli certa domus ; lucis habitamus opacis, 

Riparumque toros et prata recentia rivis 

Incolimus. Sed vos, si fert ita corde voluntas, 675 

Hoc superate jugum ; et facili jam tramite sistam. 

Dixit, et ante tulit gressum, camposque nitentes 

Desuper ostentat ; dehinc summa cacumina linquunt. 

At pater Anchises penitus convalle virenti 
Inclusas animas superumque ad lumen ituras 680 



240 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Lustrabat studio recolens, omnemque suorum 

Forte recensebat numerum carosque nepotes, 

Fataque fortunasque virum moresque manusque. 

Isque ubi tendentem adversum per gramina vidit 

Aenean, alacris palmas utrasque tetendit, 685 

Effusaeque genis lacrimae, et vox excidit ore : 

Venisti tandem, tuaque exspectata parenti 

Vicit iter durum pietas ? datur ora tueri, 

Nate, tua, et notas audire et reddere voces ? 

Sic equidem ducebam animo rebarque futurum, 6 9 o 

Tempora dinumerans, nee me mea cura fefellit. 

Quas ego te terras et quanta per aequora vectum 

Accipio ! quantis jactatum, nate, periclis ! 

Quam metui, ne quid Libyae tibi regna nocerent ' 

Ille autem : Tua me, genitor, tua tristis imago, 695 

Saepius occurrens, baec limina tendere adegit ; 

Stant sale Tyrrheno classes. Da jungere dextram, 

Da, genitor, teque amplexu ne subtrahe nostro. 

Sic memorans largo fletu simul ora rigabat. 

Ter conatus ibi collo dare brachia circum, 700 

Ter frustra comprensa manus effugit imago, 

Par levibus ventis volucrique simillima somno. 

Interea videt Aeneas in valle reducta 
Seclusum nemus et virgulta sonantia silvis, 
Lethaeumque, domos placidas qui praenatat, amnem. 705 
Hunc circum innumerae gentes populique volabant 
Ac velut in pratis ubi apes aestate serena 
Floribus insidunt variis, et Candida circum 
Lilia funduntur ; strepit omnis murmure campus. 
Horrescit visu subito, caussasque requirit 710 

Inscius Aeneas, quae sint ea flumina porro, 
Quive viri tanto complerint agmine ripas. 
Turn pater Anchises : Animae, quibus altera fato 
Corpora debentur, Lethaei ad fluminis undam 
Securos latices et longa oblivia potant. 715 

Has equidem memorare tibi atque ostendere coram, 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 24 1 

Jampridem hanc prolem cupio enumerare meorum, 

Quo magis Italia mecum laetere reperta. 

O pater, anne aliquas ad coelum hinc ire putandum est 

Sublimes animas, iterumque ad tarda reverti 720 

Corpora ? Quae lucis miseris tarn dira cupido ? 

Dicam equidem, nee te suspensum, nate, tenebo ; 

Suscipit Anchises, at que ordine singula pandit. 

Principio coelum ac terras camposque liquentes 
Lucentemque globum lunae Titaniaque astra 725 

Spiritus intus alit, totamque infusa per artus 
Mens agitat molem et magno se corpore miscet. 
Inde hominum pecudumque genus vitaeque volantum 
Et quae marmoreo fert monstra sub aequore pontus. 
Igneus est ollis vigor et coelestis origo 73 o 

Seminibus, quantum non noxia corpora tardant 
Terrenique hebetant artus moribundaque membra. 
Hinc metuunt cupiuntque, dolent gaudentque, neque auras 
Dispiciunt clausae tenebris et carcere caeco. 
Quin et supremo quum lumine vita reliquit, 735 

Non tamen omne malum miseris nee funditus omnes 
Corporeae excedunt pestes, penitusque necesse est 
Multa diu concreta modis inolescere miris. 
Ergo exercentur poenis, veterumque malorum 
Supplicia expendunt : aliae panduntur inanes 74 o 

Suspensae ad ventos ; aliis sub gurgite vasto 
Infectum eluitur scelus, aut exuritur igni ; 
Quisque suos patimur Manes ; cxinde per amplum 
Mittimur Elysium, et pauci laeta arva tenemus ; 
Donee longa dies, perfecto temporis orbe, 745 

Concretam exemit labem, purumque relinquit 
Aetherium sensum atque aurai simplicis ignem. 
Has omnes, ubi mille rotam volvere per annos, 
Lethaeum ad fluvium deus evocat agmine magno, 
Scilicet immemores supera ut convexa revisant 75 o 

Rursus et incipiant in corpora velle reverti. 

Dixerat Anchises, natumque unaque Sibyllam 



242 P. VIRGILII MARONIS 

Conventus trahit in medios turbamque sonantem, 
Et tumulum capit, unde omnes longo ordine possit 
Adversos legere, et venientum discere vultus. 755 

Nunc age, Dardaniam prolem quae deinde sequatur 
Gloria, qui maneant Itala de gente nepotes, 
Illustres animas nostrumque in nomen ituras, 
Expediam dictis, et te tua fata docebo. 
Ille, vides, pura juvenis qui nititur hasta, 760 

Proxima sorte tenet lucis loca, primus ad auras 
Aetherias Italo commixtus sanguine surget, 
Silvius, Albanum nomen, tua postuma proles, 
Quem tibi longaevo serum Lavinia conjux 
Educet silvis regem regumque parentem, 765 

Unde genus Longa nostrum dominabitur Alba. 
Proximus ille Procas, Trojanae gloria gentis, 
Et Capys, et Numitor, et qui te nomine reddet 
Silvius Aeneas, pariter pietate vel armis 
Egregius, si umquam regnandam acceperit Albam. 770 

Qui juvenes ! quantas ostentant, adspice, vires, 
Atque umbrata gerunt civili tempora quercu ! 
Hi tibi Nomentum et Gabios urbemque Fidenam, 
Hi Collatinas imponent montibus arces, 
Pometios Castrumque Inui Bolamque Coramque. 77s 

Haec turn nomina erunt, nunc sunt sine nomine terrae. 
Quin et avo comitem sese Mavortius addet 
Romulus, Assaraci quem sanguinis Ilia mater 
Educet. Viden', ut geminae stant vertice cristae, 
Et pater ipse suo superum jam signat honore ? 780 

En, hujus, nate, auspiciis ilia incluta Roma 
Imperium terris, animos aequabit Olympo, 
Septemque una sibi muro circumdabit arces, 
Felix prole virum : qualis Berecyntia mater 
Invehitur curru Phrygias turrita per urbes, 785 

Laeta deum partu, centum complexa nepotes, 
Omnes coelicolas, omnes supera alta tenentes. 
Hue geminas nunc flecte acies, hanc adspice gentem 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 243 

Romanosque tuos. Hie Caesar et omnis Iuli 

Progenies, magnum coeli ventura sub axem. 790 

Hie vir, hie est, tibi quem promitti saepius audis, 

Augustus Caesar, Divi genus, aurea condet 

Saecula qui rursus Latio regnata per arva 

Saturno quondam, super et Garamantas et Indos 

Proferet imperium ; jacet extra sidera tellus, 795 

Extra anni solisque vias, ubi coelifer Atlas 

Axem humero torquet stellis ardentibus aptum. 

Hujus in adventum jam nunc et Caspia regna 

Responsis horrent divum et Maeotia tellus, 

Et septemgemini turbant trepida ostia Nili. 800 

Nee vero Alcides tantum telluris obivit, 

Fixerit aeripedem cervam licet, aut Erymanthi 

Pacarit nemora, et Lernam tremefecerit arcu ; 

Nee, qui pampineis victor juga flectit habenis, 

Liber, agens celso Nysae de vertice tigres. 805 

Et dubitamus adhuc virtutem extendere factis, 

Aut metus Ausonia prohibet consistere terra ? 

Quis procul ille autem ramis insignis olivae 

Sacra ferens ? Nosco crines incanaque menta 

Regis Romani, primam qui legibus urbem 810 

Fundabit, Curibus parvis et paupere terra 

Missus in imperium magnum. Cui deinde subibit, 

Otia qui rumpet patriae residesque movebit 

Tullus in arma viros et jam desueta triumphis 

Agmina. Quem juxta sequitur jactantior Ancus, 815 

Nunc quoque jam nimium gaudens popularibus auris. 

Vis et Tarquinios reges, animamque superbam 

Ultoris Bruti, fascesque videre receptos ? 

Consulis imperium hie primus saevasque secures 

Accipiet, natosque pater nova bella moventes 820 

Ad poenam pulchra pro libertate vocabit, 

Infelix ! Utcumque ferent ea facta minores, 

Vincet amor patriae laudumque immensa cupido. 

Quin Decios Drusosque procul saevumque securi 



244 p - VIRGILII MARONIS 

Adspice Torquatum et referentem signa Camillum. 825 

Illae autem, paribus quas fulgere cernis in armis, 

Concordes animae nunc et dum nocte premuntur, 

Heu quantum inter se bellum, si lumina vitae 

Attigerint, quantas acies stragemque ciebunt ! 

Aggeribus socer Alpinis atque arce Monoeci 830 

Descendens, gener adversis instructus Eois. 

Ne, pueri, ne tanta animis adsuescite bella, 

Neu patriae validas in viscera vertite vires ; 

Tuque prior, tu parce, genus qui ducis Olympo, 

Projice tela manu, sanguis meus ! — s 35 

Ille triumphata Capitolia ad alta Corintho 

Victor aget currum, caesis insignis Achivis. 

Eruet ille Argos Agamemnoniasque Mycenas, 

Ipsumque Aeaciden, genus armipotentis Achilli, 

Ultus avos Trojae, templa et temerata Minervae. 840 

Quis te, magne Cato, taciturn, aut te, Cosse, relinquat ? 

Quis Gracchi genus, aut geminos, duo fulmina belli, 

Scipiadas, cladem Libyae, parvoque potentem 

Fabricium, vel te sulco, Serrane, serentem ? 

Quo fessum rapitis, Fabii ? tu Maximus ille es, 845 

Unus qui nobis cunctando restituis rem. 

Excudent alii spirantia mollius aera, 

Credo equidem, vivos ducent de marmore vultus, 

Orabunt caussas melius, coelique meatus 

Describent radio et surgentia sidera dicent : 850 

Tu regere imperio populos, Romane, memento ; 

Hae tibi erunt artes ; pacisque imponere morem, 

Parcere subjectis, et debellare superbos. 

Sic pater Anchises, atque haec mirantibus addit : 
Adspice, ut insignis spoliis Marcellus opimis 855 

Ingreditur, victorque viros supereminet omnes ! 
Hie rem Roman am, magno turbante tumultu, 
Sistet, eques sternet Poenos Gallumque rebellem, 
Tertiaque arma patri suspendet capta Quirino. 
Atque hie Aeneas ; una namque ire videbat 860 



AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 245 

Egregium forma juvenem et fulgentibus armis, 
Sed frons laeta parum, et dejecto lumina vultu : 
Quis, pater, ille, virum qui sic comitatur euntem ? 
Filius, anne aliquis magna de stirpe nepotum ? 
Quis strepitus circa comitum ! quantum instar in ipso ! 86 5 
Sed nox atra caput tristi circumvolat umbra. 
Turn pater Anchises, lacrimis ingressus obortis : 
O nate, ingentem luctum ne quaere tuorum • 
Ostendent terris hunc tantum fata, neque ultra 
Esse sinent. Nimium vobis Romana propago 8 7 o 

Visa potens, Superi, propria haec si dona fuissent. 
Quantos ille virum magnam Mavortis ad urbem 
Campus aget gemitus ! vel quae, Tiberine, videbis 
Funera, quum tumulum praeterlabere recentem ! 
Nee puer Uiaca quisquam de gente Latinos 875 

In tantum spe toilet avos, nee Romula quondam 
Ullo se tantum tellus jactabit alumno. 
Heu pietas, heu prisca fides, invictaque bello 
Dextera ! Non illi se quisquam impune tulisset 
Obvius armato, seu quum pedes iret in hostem, 880 

Seu spumantis equi foderet calcaribus armos. 
Heu, miserande puer ! si qua fata aspera rumpas, 
Tu Marcellus eris. Manibus date lilia plenis, 
Purpureos spargam flores, animamque nepotis 
His saltern accumulem donis, et fungar inani 885 

Munere. — Sic tota passim regione vagantur 
Aeris in campis latis, atque omnia lustrant. 
Quae postquam Anchises natum per singula duxit, 
Incenditque animum famae venientis amore, 
Exin bella viro memorat quae deinde gerenda, 890 

Laurentesque docet populos urbemque Latini, 
Et quo quemque modo fugiatque feratque laborem. 
Sunt geminae Somni portae, quarum altera fertur 
Cornea, qua veris facilis datur exitus Umbris ; 
Altera candenti perfecta nitens elephanto, 895 

Sed falsa ad coelum mittunt insomnia Manes. 



246 P. VIRGILII MARONIS AENEIDOS LIB. VI. 

His ubi turn natum Anchises unaque Sibyllam 
Prosequitur dictis, portaque emittit eburna, 
Hie viam secat ad naves sociosque revisit ; 
Turn se ad Caietae recto fert litore portum. 
Ancora de prora jacitur ; stant litore puppes. 



Q. HORATII FLACCI 

CARMINA. 

LIBER PRIMUS. 
CARMEN I. 

Maecenas atavis edite regibus, 

O et praesidium et dulce decus meum, 

Sunt quos curriculo pulverem Olympicum 

Collegisse juvat, metaque fervidis 

Evitata rotis palmaque nobilis 5 

Terrarum dominos evehit ad Deos ; 

Hunc, si mobilium turba Quiritium 

Certat tergeminis tollere honoribus ; 

Ilium, si proprio condidit horreo 

Quidquid de Libycis verritur areis. 10 

Gaudentem patrios findere sarculo 

Agros Attalicis conditionibus 

Nunquam dimoveas, ut trabe Cypria 

Myrtoum pavidus nauta secet mare. 

Luctantem Icariis fluctibus Africum 15 

Mercator metuens otium et oppidi 

Laudat rura sui ; mox reficit rates 

Quassas indocilis pauperiem pati; 

Est qui nee veteris pocula Massici 

Nee partem solido demere de die 20 

Spernit, nunc viridi membra sub arbuto 

Stratus, nunc ad aquae lene caput sacrae. 



248 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Multos castra juvant et lituo tubae 

Permixtus sonitus bellaque matribus 

Detestata. Manet sub Jove frigido 25 

Venator tenerae conjugis immemor, 

Seu visa est catulis cerva fidelibus, 

Seu rupit teretes Marsus aper plagas. 

Me doctarum hederae praemia frontium 

Dis miscent superis ; me gelidum nemus 30 

Nympharumque leves cum Satyris chori 

Secernunt populo, si neque tibias 

Euterpe cohibet nee Polyhymnia 

Lesboum refugit tendere barbiton. 

Quod si me lyricis vatibus inseris, 3s 

Sublimi feriam sidera vertice. 



CARMEN II. 

Jam satis terris nivis atque dirae 
Grandinis misit Pater, et rubente 
Dextera sacras jaculatus arces 

Terruit Urbem, 
Terruit gentes, grave ne rediret 
Seculum Pyrrhae nova monstra questae, 
Omne quum Proteus pecus egit altos 

Visere montes, 
Piscium et summa genus haesit ulmo 
Nota quae sedes fuerat columbis, 
Et super] ecto pavidae natarunt 

Aequore damae. 
Vidimus flavum Tiberim retortis 
Littore Etrusco violenter undis 
Ire dejectum monumenta regis 

Templaque Vestae ; 
Iliae dum se nimium querenti 



CARMINUM LIB. I. C. II. 249 

Jactat ultorem, vagus et sinistra 
Labitur ripa Jove non probante u- 

xorius amnis. 20 

Audiet cives acuisse ferrum 
Quo graves Persae melius perirent; 
Audiet pugnas vitio parentum 

Rara juventus. 
Quem vocet divum populus mentis 25 

Imperi rebus ? Prece qua fatigent 
Virgines sanctae minus audientem 

Carmina Vestam ? 
Cui dabit partes scelus expiandi 
Juppiter ? Tandem venias precamur 30 

Nube candentes humeros amictus, 

Augur Apollo ; 
Sive tu mavis, Erycina ridens, 
Quam Jocus circum volat et Cupido ; 
Sive neglectum genus et nepotes 35 

Respicis auctor, 
Heu nimis longo satiate ludo, 
Quem juvat clamor galeaeque leves 
Acer et Mauri peditis cruentum 

Vultus in hostem ; 4 o 

Sive mutata juvenem figura 
Ales in terris imitaris, almae 
Filius Maiae, patiens vocari 

Caesaris ultor : 
Serus in coelum redeas diuque 4S 

Laetus intersis populo Quirini ; 
Neve te nostris vitiis iniquum 

Ocior aura 
Tollat. Hie magnos potius triumphos, 
Hie ames dici pater atque princeps, 5 o 

Neu sinas Medos equitare inultos 

Te duce, Caesar. 



250 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

CARMEN III. 

Sic te diva potens Gypri, 
Sic fratres Helenae lucida sidera, 

Ventorumque regat pater, 
Obstrictis aliis praeter Iapyga : 

Navis, quae tibi creditum 
Debes Virgilium finibus Atticis 

Reddas incolumen precor, 
Et serves animae dimidium meae. 

Illi robur et aes triplex 
Circa pectus erat qui fragilem truci 

Commisit pelago ratem 
Primus, nee timuit praecipitem Africum 

Decertantem Aquilonibus, 
k Nee tristes Hyadas, nee rabiem Noti 

Quo non arbiter Hadriae 
Major tollere seu ponere vult freta. 

Quem Mortis timuit gradum 
Qui siccis oculis monstra natantia, 

Qui vidit mare turgidum et 
Infames scopulos Acroceraunia ? 

Nequidquam deus abscidit 
Prudens Oceano dissociabili 

Terras, si tamen impiae 
Non tangenda rates transiliunt vada. 

Audax omnia perpeti 
Gens humana ruit per vetitum nefas. 

Audax Iapeti genus 
Ignem fraude mala gentibus intulit. 

Post ignem aetheria domo 
Subductum macies et nova febrium 

Terris incubuit cohors, 
Semotique prius tarda necessitas 



CARMINUM LIB. I. C. IV. 25 1 

Leti corripuit gradum. 
Expertus vacuum Daedalus aera 

Pennis non homini datis ; 3 s 

Perrupit Acheronta Herculeus labor. 

Nil mortalibus ardui est ; 
Coelum ipsum petimus stultitia, neque 

Per nostrum patimur scelus 
Iracunda Jovem ponere fulmina. 40 



CARMEN IV. 

Solvitur acris hiems grata vice veris et Favoni, 

Trahuntque siccas machinae carinas, 
Ac neque jam stabulis gaudet pecus aut arator igni ; 

Nee prata canis albicant pruinis. 
Jam Cytherea choros ducit Venus imminente luna, 

Junctaeque Nymphis Gratiae decentes 
Alterno terrain quatiunt pede, dum graves Cyclopum 

Vulcanus ardens urit officinas. 
Nunc decet aut viridi nitidum caput impedire myrto 

Aut flore terrae quern ferunt solutae. 
Nunc et in umbrosis Fauno decet immolare lucis, 

Seu poscat agnam sive malit haedum. 
Pallida Mors aequo pulsat pede pauperum tabernas 

Regumque turres. O beate Sesti, 
Vitae summa brevis spem nos vetat inchoare longam. 

Jam te premet nox fabulaeque Manes 
Et domus exilis Plutonia : quo simul mearis, 

Nee regna vini sortiere talis 
Nee tenerum Lycidan mirabere, quo calet juventus 

Nunc omnis et mox virgines tepebunt. 



252 Q. HORATII FLACCI 



CARMEN VII. 



Laudabunt alii claram Rhodon aut Mytilenen 

Aut Ephesori bimarisve Corinthi 
Moenia, vel Baccho Thebas vel Apolline Delphos 

Insignes, aut Thessala Tempe. 
Sunt quibus unum opus est intactae Palladis urbem 

Carmine perpetuo celebrare et 
Undique decerptam fronti praeponere olivam. 

Plurimus in Junonis honorem 
Aptum dicit equis Argos ditesque Mycenas. 

Me nee tarn patiens Lacedaemon 
Nee tam Larissae percussit campus opimae, 

Quam domus Albuneae resonantis 
Et praeceps Anio ac Tiburni lucus et uda 

Mobilibus pomaria rivis. 
Albus ut obscuro deterget nubila coelo 

Saepe Notus neque parturit imbres 
Perpetuo, sic tu sapiens finire memento 

Tristitiam vitaeque labores 
Molli, Plance, mero, seu te fulgentia signis 

Castra tenent, seu densa tenebit 
Tiburis umbra tui. Teucer Salamina patremque 

Quum fugeret tamen uda Lyaeo 
Tempora populea fertur vinxisse corona, 

Sic tristes affatus amicos : 
Quo nos cumque feret melior fortuna parente 

Ibimus, o socii comitesque. 
Nil desperandum Teucro duce et auspice Teucro ; 

Certus enim promisit Apollo 
Ambiguam tellure nova Salamina futuram. 

O fortes pejoraque passi 
Mecum saepe viri, nunc vino pellite curas ; 

Cras ingens iterabimus aequor. 



CARMINUM LIB. I. C. X. 253 



CARMEN IX. 

Vides ut alta stet nive candidum 
Soracte, nee jam sustineant onus 
Silvae laborantes geluque 
Flumina constiterint acuto. 
Dissolve frigus ligna super foco 
Large reponens, atque benignius 
Deprome quadrimum Sabina, 
O thaliarche, merum diota. 
Permitte divis cetera, qui simul 
Stravere ventos aequore fervido 
Deproeliantes, nee cupressi 
Nee veteres agitantur orni. 
Quid sit futurum eras fuge quaerere, et 
Quern Fors dierum cumque dabit lucro 
Appone, nee dulces amores 
Sperne puer neque tu choreas, 
Donee virenti canities abest 
Morosa. Nunc et campus et areae 
Lenesque sub noctem susurri 
Composita repetantur hora ; 
Nunc et latentis proditor intimo 
Gratus puellae risus ab angulo, 
Pignusque dereptum lacertis 
Aut digito male pertinaci. 



CARMEN X. 

Mercuri, facunde nepos Atlantis, 
Qui feros cultus hominum recentum 
Voce formasti catus et decorae 
More palaestrae, 



254 Q- HORATII FLACCI 

Te canam, magni Jovis et deorum 
Nuntium curvaeque lyrae parentem, 
Callidum quidquid placuit jocoso 

Condere furto. 
Te boves olim nisi reddidisses 
Per dolum amotas puerum minaci 
Voce dum terret, viduus pharetra 

Risit Apollo. 
Quin et Atridas duce te superbos 
Ilio dives Priamus relicto 
Thessalosque ignes et iniqua Trojae 

Castra fefellit. 
Tu pias laetis animas reponis 
Sedibus virgaque levem coerces 
Aurea turbam, superis deorum 

Gratus et imis. 



CARMEN XI. 

Tu ne quaesieris, scire nefas, quem mini, quern tibi 
Finem di dederint, Leuconoe, nee Babylonios 
Tentaris numeros. Ut melius quidquid erit pati, 
Seu plures hiemes seu tribuit Juppiter ultimam, 
Quae nunc oppositis debilitat pumicibus mare 
Tyrrhenum. Sapias, vina liques, et spatio brevi 
Spem longam reseces. Dum loquimur, fugerit invida 
Aetas. Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero. 



CARMEN XII. 

Quem virum aut heroa lyra vel acri 
Tibia sumis celebrare, Clio, 



CARMINUM LIB. I. C. XII. 255 

Quem deum ? Cujus recinet jocosa 

Nomen imago 
Aut in umbrosis Heliconis oris s 

Aut super Pindo, gelidove in Haemo 
Unde vocalem temere insecutae 

Orphea silvae 
Arte materna rapidos morantem 
Fluminum lapsus celeresque ventos, 10 

Blandum et auritas fidibus canoris 

Ducere quercus ? 
Quid prius dicam solitis Parentis 
Laudibus, qui res hominum ac deorum, 
Qui mare ac terras variisque mundum 15 

Temperat horis ? 
Unde nil majus generatur ipso, 
Nee viget quidquam simile aut secundum : 
Proximos illi tamen occupavit 

Pallas honores. 20 

Proeliis audax, neque te silebo, 
Liber, et saevis inimica Virgo 
Beluis, nee te, metuende certa 

Phoebe sagitta. 
Dicam et Alciden puerosque Ledae, 25 

Hunc equis, ilium superare pugnis 
Nobilem ; quorum simul alba nautis 

Stella refulsit, 
Defluit saxis agitatus humor, 

Concidunt venti fugiuntque nubes, 30 

Et minax, quod sic voluere, ponto 

Unda recumbit. 
Romulum post hos prius an quietum 
Pompili regnum memorem an superbos 
Tarquini fasces dubito, an Catonis 35 

Nobile letum. 
Regulum et Scauros animaeque magnae 
Prodigum Paullum superante Poeno 



256 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Gratus insigni referam Camena 

Fabriciumque. 4° 

Hunc et incomptis Curium capillis 
Utilem bello tulit et Camillum 
Saeva paupertas et avitus apto 

Cum lare fundus. 
Crescit occulto velut arbor aevo 45 

Fama Marcelli ; micat inter omnes 
Julium sidus velut inter ignes 

Luna minores. 
Gentis humanae pater atque custos 
Orte Saturno, tibi cura magni S o 

Caesaris fatis data : tu secundo 

Caesare regnes. 
Ille, seu Parthos Latio imminentes 
Egerit justo domitos triumpho, 
Sive subjectos Orientis orae 55 

Seras et Indos, 
Te minor latum reget aequus orbem ; 
Tu gravi curru quaties Olympum, 
Tu parum castis inimica mittes 

Fulmina lucis. 60 



CARMEN XIV. 

O navis, referent in mare te novi 
Fluctus ! O quid agis ? Fortiter occupa 
Portum. Nonne vides ut 
Nudum remigio latus 
Et malus celeri saucius Africo 
Antennaeque gemant, ac sine funibus 
Vix durare carinae 
Possint imperiosius 
Aequor ? Non tibi sunt integra lintea, 



CARMINUM LIB. I. C. XVI. 257 

Non di, quos iterum pressa voces malo. 10 

Quamvis Pontica pinus, 
Silvae filia nobilis, 
Jactes et genus et nomen inutile, 
Nil pictis timidus navita puppibus 

Fidit. Tu, nisi ventis 15 

Debes ludibrium, cave. 
Nuper sollicitum quae mihi taedium, 
Nunc desiderium curaque non levis, 
Interfusa nitentes 
Vites aequora Cycladas. 20 



CARMEN XVI. 

O matre pulchra filia pulchrior, 
Quern criminosis cum que voles modum 
Pones iambis, sive flamma 
Sive mari libet Hadriano. 
Non Dindymene, non adytis quatit 
Mentem sacerdotum incola Pythius, 
Non Liber aeque, non acuta 
Sic geminant Corybantes aera, 
Tristes ut irae, quas neque Noricus 
Deterret ensis nee mare naufragum 
Nee saevus ignis nee tremendo 
Juppiter ipse ruens tumultu. 
Fertur Prometheus, addere principi 
Limo coactus particulam undique 
Desectam, et insani leonis 

Vim stomacho apposuisse nostro. 
Irae Thyesten exitio gravi 
Stravere, et altis urbibus ultimae 
Stetere causae, cur perirent 
Funditus imprimeretque muris 



258 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Hostile aratrum exercitus insolens. 
Compesce mentem : me quoque pectoris 
Tentavit in dulci juventa 
Fervor et in celeres iambos 
Misit furentem ; nunc ego mitibus 
Mutare quaero tristia, dum mihi 
Fias recantatis arnica 

Opprobriis animumque reddas. 



CARMEN XXII. 

Integer vitae scelerisque purus 
Non eget Mauris jaculis neque arcu 
Nee venenatis gravida sagittis, 

Fusee, pharetra, 
Sive per Syrtes iter aestuosas 
Sive facturus per inhospitalem 
Caucasum vel quae loca fabulosus 

Lambit Hydaspes. 
Namque me silva lupus in Sabina, 
Dum meam canto Lalagen et ultra 
Terminum curis vagor expeditis, 

Fugit inermem ; 
Quale portentum neque militaris 
Daunias latis alit aesculetis, 
Nee Jubae tellus generat, leonum 

Arida nutrix. 
Pone me pigris ubi nulla campis 
Arbor aestiva recreatur aura, 
Quod latus mundi nebulae malusque 

Juppiter urget ; 
Pone sub curru nimium propinqui 
Solis in terra domibus negata : 
Dulce ridentem Lalagen amabo, 

Dulce loquentem. 



CARMINUM LIB. I. C. XXVI. 259 



CARMEN XXIV. 



Quis desiderio sit pudor aut modus 
Tarn cari capitis ? Praecipe lugubres 
Cantus, Melpomene, cui liquidam pater 

Vocem cum cithara dedit. 
Ergo Quinctilium perpetuus sopor 
Urget ! cui Pudor, et Justitiae soror 
Incorrupta Fides, nudaque Veritas 

Quando ullum inveniet parem ? 
Multis ille bonis flebilis occidit, 
Nulli flebilior quam tibi, Virgili. 
Tu frustra pius heu non ita creditum 

Poscis Quinctilium deos. 
Quod si Threicio blandius Orpheo 
Auditam moderere arboribus fidem, 
Non vanae redeat sanguis imagini, 

Quam virga semel horrida 
Non lenis precibus fata recludere 
Nigro compulerit Mercurius gregi. 
Durum : sed levius fit patientia 

Quidquid corrigere est nefas. 



CARMEN XXVt. 

Musis amicus tristitiam et metus 
Tradam protervis in mare Creticum 
Portare ventis, quis sub Arcto 
Rex gelidae metuatur orae, 
Quid Tiridaten terreat unice 
Securus. O, quae fontibus integris 
Gaudes, apricos necte flores, 
Necte meo Lamiae coronam, 



260 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Pimplea dulcis ! Nil sine te mei 
Prosunt honores : hunc fidibus novis, 
Hunc Lesbio sacrare plectro 
Teque tuasque decet sorores. 



CARMEN XXXI. 

Quid dedicatum poscit Apollinem 
Vates ? quid orat de patera novum 
Fundens liquorem ? Non opimae 
Sardiniae segetes feraces, 
Non aestuosae grata Calabriae 
Armenta, non aurum aut ebur*' Indicum, 
Non rura quae Liris quieta 
Mordet aqua taciturnus amnis. 
Premant Calena falce quibus dedit 
Fortuna vitem, dives et aureis 
Mercator exsiccet culullis 

Vina Syra reparata merce, 
Dis carus ipsis, quippe ter et quater 
Anno revisens aequor Atlanticum 
Impune. Me pascunt olivae, 
Me cichorea levesque malvae. 
Frui paratis et valido mihi, 
Latoe, do*es et precor integra 

Cum mente, nee turpem senectam 
Degere nee cithara carentem. 



CARMEN XXXIV. 

Parcus deorum cultor et infrequens 
Insanientis dum sapientiae 



CARMINUM LIB. I. C. XXXV. 26 1 

Consultus erro, nunc retrorsum 
Vela dare atque iter are cursus 
Cogor relictos ; namque Diespiter, 5 

Igni corusco nubila dividens 
Plerumque, per purum tonantes 
Egit equos volucremque currum, 
Quo bruta tellus et vaga flumina, 
Quo Styx et invisi horrida Taenari 10 

Sedes Atlanteusque finis 

Concutitur. Valet ima summis 
Mutare et insignem attenuat deus 
Obscura promens ; hinc apicem rapax 

Fortuna cum stridore acuto 15 

Sustulit, hie posuisse gaudet. 



CARMEN XXXV. 

O Diva, gratum quae regis Antium, 
Praesens vel imo tollere de gradu 
Mortale corpus, vel superbos 
Vertere funeribus triumphos, 
Te pauper ambit sollicita prece 
Runs colonus, te dominam aequoris 
Quicumque Bithyna lacessit 
Carpathium pelagus carina. 
Te Dacus asper, te profugi Scythae 
Urbesque gentesque et Latium ferox . 
Regumque matres barbarorum et 
Purpurei metuunt tyranni, 
Injurioso ne pede proruas 
Stantem columnam, neu populus frequens 
Ad arma cessantes, ad arma 
Concitet imperiumque frangat. 
Te semper anteit saeva Necessitas 



262 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Clavos trabales et cuneos manu 
Gestans aena, nee severus 

Uncus abest liquidumque plumbum. 20 

Te Spes et albo rara Fides colit 
Velata panno nee comitem abnegat, 
Utcumque mutata potentes 
Veste domos inimica linquis. 
At vulgus infidum et meretrix retro 25 

Perjura cedit ; diffugiunt cadis 
Cum faece siccatis amici 
Ferre jugum pariter dolosi. 
Serves iturum Caesarem in ultimos 
Orbis Britannos, et juvenum recens 30 

Examen Eois timendum 
Partibus Oceanoque rubro. 
Eheu cicatricum et sceleris pudet 
Fratrumque. Quid nos dura refugimus 

Aetas ? quid intactum nefasti 35 

Liquimus ? unde manum juventus 
Metu deorum continuit ? quibus 
Pepercit aris ? O utinam nova 
Incude diffingas retusum in 

Massagetas Arabasque ferrum ! 40 



CARMEN XXXVII. 

Nunc est bibendum, nunc pede libero 
Pulsanda tellus, nunc Saliaribus 
Ornare pulvinar deorum 

Tempus erat dapibus, sodales. 
Antehac nefas depromere Caecubum 
Cellis avitis, dum Capitolio 
Regina dementes ruinas 
Funus et imperio parabat 



CARMINUM LIB. I. G. XXXVIII. 263 

Contaminato cum grege turpium 
Morbo virorum, quidlibet impotens 10 

Sperare fortunaque dulci 
Ebria. Sed minuit furorem 
Vix una sospes navis ab ignibus, 
Mentemque lymphatam Mareotico 

Redegit in veros timores 15 

Caesar, ab Italia volantem 
Remis adurgens, accipiter velut 
Molles columbas, aut leporem citus 
Venator in campis nivalis 

Haemoniae, daret ut catenis 20 

Fatale monstrum : quae generosius 
Perire quaerens, nee muliebriter 
Expavit ensem nee latentes 
Classe cita reparavit oras. 
Ausa et jacentem visere regiam 25 

Vultu sereno, fortis et asperas 
Tractare serpentes, ut atrum 
Corpore combiberet venenum, 
Deliberata morte ferocior, 

Saevis Liburnis scilicet invidens 3° 

Privata deduci superbo 

Non humilis mulier triumpho. 



CARMEN XXXVIII. 

Persicos odi, puer, apparatus, 
Displicent nexae philyra coronae ; 
Mitte sectari rosa quo locorum 

Sera moretur. 
Simplici myrto nihil allabores 
Sedulus euro : neque te ministrum 
Dedecet myrtus neque me sub arta 

Vite bibentem. 



264 Q. HORATII FLACCI 



LIBER SECUNDUS. 



CARMEN II. 

Nullus argento color est avaris 
Abdito terris, inimice lamnae 
Crispe Sallusti, nisi temperato 

Splendeat usu. 
Vivet extento Proculeius aevo 
Notus in fratres animi paterni ; 
Ilium aget penna metuente solvi 

Fama superstes. 
Lathis regnes avidum domando 
Spiritum, quam si Libyam remotis 
Gadibus jungas et uterque Poenus 

Serviat uni. 
Crescit indulgens sibi dirus hydrops, 
Nee sitim pellit nisi causa morbi 
Fugerit venis et aquosus albo 

Corpore languor. 
Redditum Cyri solio Phraaten 
Dissidens plebi numero beatorum 
Eximit Virtus, populumque falsis 

Dedocet uti 
Vocibus, regnum et diadema tutum 
Deferens uni propriamque laurum 
Quisquis ingentes oculo irretorto 

Spectat acervos. 



CARMINUM LIB. II. C. III. 26^ 



CARMEN III. 

Aequam memento rebus in arduis 
Servare mentem, non secus in bonis 
Ab insolenti temperatam 
Laetitia, moriture Delli, 
Seu maestus omni tempore vixeris, 5 

Seu te in remoto gramine per dies 
Festos reclinatum bearis 
Interiore nota Falerni. 
Quo pinus ingens albaque populus 
Umbram hospitalem consociare amant 10 

Ramis ? Quid obliquo laborat 
Lympha fugax trepidare rivo ? 
Hue vina et unguenta et nimium breves 
Flores amoenae ferre jube rosae, 

Dum res et aetas et sororum 15 

Fila trium patiuntur atra. 
Cedes coemptis saltibus et domo 
Villaque flavus quam Tiberis lavit, 
Cedes et exstructis in altum 

Divitiis potietur heres. 20 

Divesne prisco natus ab Inacho 
Nil interest an pauper et infima 
De gente sub divo moreris, 
Victima nil miserantis Orci. 
Omnes eodem cogimur, omnium 25 

Versatur urna serius ocius 

Sors exitura et nos in aetemum 
Exilium impositura cumbae. 



266 Q. HORATII FLACCI 



CARMEN IX. 

Non semper imbres nubibus hispidos 
Manant in agros, aut mare Caspium 
Vexant inaequales procellae 
Usque, nee Armeniis in oris, 
Amice Valgi, stat glacies iners 
Menses per omnes, aut Aquilonibus 
Querceta Gargani laborant 
Et foliis viduantur orni : 
Tu semper urges flebilibus modis 
Mysten ademptum, nee tibi Vespero 
Surgente decedunt amores 
Nee rapidum fugiente Solem. 
At non ter aevo functus amabilem 
Ploravit omnes Antilochum senex 
Annos, nee impubem parentes 
Troilon, aut Phrygiae sorores 
Flevere semper. Desine mollium 
Tandem querelarum, et potius nova 
Cantemus Augusti tropaea 
Caesaris et rigidum Niphaten, 
Medumque flumen gentibus additum 
Victis minores volvere vertices, 
Intraque praescriptum Gelonos 
Exiguis equitare campis. 



CARMEN X. 

Rectius vives, Licini, neque altum 
Semper urgendo neque, dum procellas 
Cautus borrescis, nimium premendo 
Litus iniquum. 









CARMINUM LIB. II. C. XIII. 267 

Auream quisquis mediocritatem 5 

Diligit, tutus caret obsoleti 
Sordibus tecti, caret invidenda 

Sobrius aula. 
Saepius ventis agitatur ingens 
Pinus, et celsae graviore casu 10 

Decidunt turres, feriuntque summos 

Fulgura montes. 
Sperat infestis, metuit secundis 
Alteram sortem bene praeparatum 
Pectus. Informes hiemes reducit 15 

Juppiter, idem 
Summovet. Non, si male nunc, et olim 
Sic erit : quondam cithara tacentem 
Suscitat Musam, neque semper arcum 

Tendit Apollo. 20 

Rebus angustis animosus atque 
Fortis appare ; sapienter idem 
Contraries vento nimium secundo 

Turgida vela. 



CARMEN XIII. 

Ille et nefasto te posuit die, 
Quicumque primum, et sacrilega manu 

Produxit, arbos, in nepotum 
Perniciem opprobriumque pagi ; 
Ilium et parentis crediderim sui 
Fregisse cervicem et penetralia 

Sparsisse nocturno cruore 

Hospitis ; ille venena Colchica 
Et quidquid usquam concipitur nefas 
Tractavit, agro qui statuit meo 

Te, triste lignum, te caducum 



Q. HORATII FLACCI 

In domini caput immerentis. 
Quid quisque vitet, nunquam homini satis 
Cautum est in horas : navita Bosporum 

Poenus perhorrescit neque ultra is 

Caeca timet aliunde fata, 
Miles sagittas et celerem fugam 
Parthi, catenas Parthus et Italum 
Robur ; sed improvisa leti 

Vis rapuit rapietque gentes. 20 

Quam paene furvae regna Proserpinae 
Et judicantem vidimus Aeacum 
Sedesque discretas piorum, et 
Aeoliis fidibus querentem 
Sappho puellis de popularibus, 25 

Et te sonantem plenius aureo, 
Alcaee, plectro dura navis, 
Dura fugae mala, dura belli ! 
Utrumque sacro digna silentio 
Mirantur umbrae dicere ; sed magis 30 

Pugnas et exactos tyrannos 

Densum humeris bibit aure vulgus. 
Quid mirum, ubi illis carminibus stupens 
Demittit atras belua centiceps 

Aures, et intorti capillis 35 

Eumenidum recreantur angues ? 
Quin et Prometheus et Pelopis parens 
Dulci laborum decipitur sono ; 
Nee curat Orion leones 

Aut timidos agitare lyncas. 40 



CARMEN XIV. 

Eheu fugaces, Postume, Postume, 
Labuntur anni, nee pietas moram 



CARMINUM LIB. II. C. XV. 269 

Rugis et instanti senectae 
Afferet indomitaeque morti ; 
Non, si trecenis, quotquot eunt dies, 5 

Amice, places illacrimabilem 
Plutona tauris, qui ter amplum 
Geryonen Tityonque tristi , 
Compescit unda, scilicet omnibus 
Quicumque terrae munere vescimur 10 

Enaviganda, sive reges 
Sive inopes erimus coloni. 
Frustra cruento Marte carebimus, 
Fractisque rauci fluctibus Hadriae, 

Frustra per auctumnos nocentem 15 

Corporibus metuemus Austrum : 
Visendus ater flumine languido 
Cocytos errans et Danai genus 
Infame damnatusque longi 

Sisyphus Aeolides laboris. 20 

Linquenda tellus et domus et placens 
Uxor, neque harum quas colis arborum 
Te praeter invisas cupressos 
Ulla brevem dominum sequetur. 
Absumet heres Caecuba dignior 25 

Servata centum clavibus, et mero 
Tinget pavimentum superbo 
Pontificum potiore coenis. 



CARMEN XV. 

Jam pauca aratro jugera regiae 
Moles relinquent ; undique latius 
Extenta visentur Lucrino 

Stagna lacu, platanusque caelebs 
Evincet ulmos ; turn violaria et 



70 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Myrtus et omnis copia narium 
Spargent olivetis odorem 
Fertilibus domino priori, 
Turn spissa ramis laurea fervidos 
Excludet ictus. Non ita Romuli 
Praescriptum et intonsi Catonis 
Auspiciis veterumque norma. 
Privatus illis census erat brevis, 
Commune magnum : nulla decempedis 
Metata privatis opacam 
Porticus excipiebat Arcton, 
Nee fortuitum spernere caespitem 
Leges sinebant, oppida publico 
Sumptu jubentes et deorum 
Templa novo decorare saxo. 



CARMEN XVI. 

Otium divos rogat in patente 
Prensus Aegaeo, simul atra nubes 
Condidit lunam neque certa fulgent 

Sidera nautis ; 
Otium bello furiosa Thrace, 5 

Otium Medi pharetra decori, 
Grosphe, non gemmis neque purpura ve- 

nale neque auro. 
Non enim gazae neque consularis 
Summovet lictor miseros tumultus 10 

Mentis, et curas laqueata circum 

Tecta volantes. 
Vivitur parvo bene cui paternum 
Splendet in mensa tenui salinum, 
Nee leves somnos timor aut cupido 15 

Sordidus aufert. 



CARMINUM LIB. II. C. XVII. 27 1 

Quid brevi fortes jaculamur aevo 
Multa? Quid terras alio calentes 
Sole mutamus ? Patriae quis exsul 

Se quo que fugit ? 20 

Scandit aeratas vitiosa naves 
Cura nee turmas equitum relinquit, 
Ocior cervis et agente nimbos 

Ocior Euro. 
Laetus in praesens animus quod ultra est 25 

Oderit curare, et amara lento 
Temperet risu ; nihil est ab omni 

Parte beatum. 
Abstulit clarum cita mors Achillem, 
Longa Tithonum minuit senectus, 30 

Et mihi forsan tibi quod negarit 

Porriget hora. 
Te greges centum Siculaeque circum 
Mugiunt vaccae, tibi tollit hinnitum 
Apta quadrigis equa, te bis Afro 35 

Murice tinctae 
Vestiunt lanae : mihi parva rura et 
Spiritum Graiae tenuem Camenae 
Parca non mendax dedit et malignum 

Spernere vulgus. 4 o 



CARMEN XVII. 

Cur me querelis exanimas tuis ? 
Nee dis amicum est nee mihi te prius 

Obire, Maecenas, mearum 

Grande decus columenque rerum. 
Ah te meae si partem animae rapit 
Maturior vis, quid moror altera, 

Nee cams aeque nee superstes 



272 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Integer ? Ille dies utramque 
Ducet ruinam. Non ego perfidum 
Dixi sacramentum : ibimus, ibimus, 
Utcumque praecedes, supremum 
Carpere iter comites parati. 
Me nee Chimaerae spiritus igneae 
Nee, si resurgat, centimanus Gyas 
Divellet unquam : sic potenti 
Justitiae placitumque Parcis. 
Seu Libra seii me Scorpios adspicit 
Formidolosus pars violentior 
Natalis horae, seu tyrannus 
Hesperiae Capricornus undae, 
Utrumque nostrum incredibili modo 
Consentit astrum. Te Jovis impio 
Tutela Saturno refulgens 
Eripuit volucrisque Fati 
Tardavit alas, quum populus frequens 
Laetum theatris ter crepuit sonum : 
Me truncus illapsus cerebro 
Sustulerat, nisi Faunus ictum 
Dextra levasset, Mercurialium 
Custos viromm. Reddere victimas 
Aedemque votivam memento : 
Nos humilem feriemus agnam. 



CARMEN XVIII. 

Non ebur neque aureum 
Mea renidet in domo lacunar ; 

Non trabes Hymettiae 
Premunt columnas ultima recisas 

Africa ; neque Attali 
Ignotus heres regiam occupavi ; 



CARMINUM LIB. II. C. XVIII. 273 

Nec Laconicas mihi 
Trahunt honestae purpuras clientae : 

At fides et ingeni 
Benigna vena est, pauperemque dives 10 

Me petit ; nihil supra 
Deos lacesso, nec potentem amicum 

Largiora flagito, 
Satis beatus unicis Sabinis. 

Truditur dies die, i 5 

Novaeque pergunt interire lunae. 

Tu secanda marmora 
Locas sub ipsum funus, et sepuichri 

Immemor struis domos 
Marisque Baiis obstrepentis urges 20 

Summovere litora, 
Parum locuples continente ripa. 

Quid, quod usque proximos 
Revellis agri terminos et ultra 

Limites clientium 25 

Salis avarus ? Pellitur paternos 

In sinu ferens deos 
Et uxor et vir sordidosque natos ; 

Nulla certior tamen 
Rapacis Orci fine destinata 30 

Aula divitem manet 
Herum. Quid ultra tendis ? Aequa tellus 

Pauperi recluditur 
Regumque pueris, nec satelles Orci 

Callidum Promethea 35 

Revexit auro captus. Hie superbum 

Tantalum atque Tantali 
Genus coercet ; hie levare functum 

Pauperem laboribus 
Vocatus atque non vocatus audit. 4Q 

18 



2 74 Q- HORATII FLACCI 



CARMEN XX. 



Non usitata nee tenui ferar 
Penna biformis per liquidum aethera 
Vates, neque in terris morabor 
Longius, invidiaque major 
Urbes relinquam. Non ego pauperum 
Sanguis parentum, non ego quem vocas, 
Dilecte Maecenas, obibo, 
Nee Stygia cohibebor unda. 
Jam jam residunt cruribus asperae 
Pelles, et album mutor in alitem 
Superne, nascunturque leves 
Per digitos humerosque plumae. 
Jam Daedaleo ocior Icaro 
Visam gementis litora Bospori 
Syrtesque Gaetulas canorus 
Ales Hyperboreosque campos. 
Me Colchus et qui dissimulat metum 
Marsae cohortis Dacus et ultimi 
Noscent Geloni, me peritus 

Discet Hiber Rhodanique potor. 
Absint inani funere neniae 
Luctusque turpes et querimoniae ; 
Compesce clamorem ac sepulcri 
Mitte supervacuos honores. 



CARMINUM LIB. III. C. I. 275 



LIBER TERTIUS. 



CARMEN I. 

Odi profanum vulgus et arceo ; 
Favete Unguis : carmina non prius 
Audita Musarum sacerdos 
Virginibus puerisque canto. 
Regum timendorum in proprios greges, 
Reges in ipsos imperium est Jovis 
Clari Giganteo triumpho, 
Cuncta supercilio moventis. 
Est ut viro vir latius ordinet 
Arbusta sulcis, hie generosior 
Descendat in campum petitor, 
Moribus hie meliorque fama 
Contendat, illi turba clientium 
Sit major : aequa lege Necessitas 
Sortitur insignes et imos ; 

Omne capax movet urna nomen. 
Districtus ensis cui super impia 
Cervice pendet non Siculae dapes 
Dulcem elaborabunt saporem, 
Non avium citharaeque cantus 
Somnum reducent. Somnus agrestium 
Lenis virorum non humiles domos 
Fastidit umbrosamque ripam, 
Non Zephyris agitata Tempe. 
Desiderantem quod satis est neque 
Tumultuosum sollicitat mare, 
Nee saevus Arcturi cadentis 
Impetus aut orientis Haedi, 
Non verberatae grandine vineae 



276 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Fundusque mendax, arbore nunc aquas 30 

Culpante nunc torrentia agros 
Sidera nunc hiemes iniquas. 
Contracta pisces aequora sentiunt 
Jactis in altum molibus ; hue frequens 

Caementa demittit redemptor 35 

Cum famulis dominusque terrae 
Fastidiosus. Sed Timor et Minae 
Scandunt eodem quo dominus, neque 
Decedit aerata triremi, et 

Post equitem sedet atra Cura. 40 

Quod si dolentem nee Phrygius lapis 
Nee purpurarum sidere clarior 
Delenit usus nee Falerna 

Vitis Achaemeniumque costum, 
Cur invidendis postibus et novo 4s 

Sublime ritu moliar atrium ? 
Cur valle permutem Sabina 
Divitias operosiores ? 



CARMEN II. 

Angustam amice pauperiem pati 
Robustus acri militia puer 
Condiscat, et Parthos feroces 
Vexet eques metuendus hasta, 
Vitamque sub divo et trepidis agat 
In rebus. Ilium ex moenibus hosticis 
Matrona bellantis tyranhi 
Prospiciens et adulta virgo 
Suspiret, eheu, ne rudis agminum 
Sponsus lacessat regius asperum 
Tactu leonem, quern cruenta 
Per medias rapit ira caedes. 



CARMINUM LIB. III. C. III. 277 

Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori : 
Mors et fugacem persequitur virum, 

Nee parcit imbellis juventae 15 

Poplitibus timidoque tergo. 
Virtus repulsae nescia sordidae 
Intaminatis fulget honoribus, 
Nee sumit aut ponit secures 

Arbitrio popularis aurae. 20 

Virtus recludens immeritis mori 
Coelum negata tentat iter via, 
Coetusque vulgares et udam 
Spernit humum fugiente penna. 
Est et fideli tuta silentio 25 

Merces : vetabo qui Cereris sacrum 
Vulgarit arcanae sub isdem 
Sit trabibus fragilemve mecum 
Solvat phaselon. Saepe Diespiter 
Neglectus incesto addidit integrum ; 3° 

Raro antecedentem scelestum 
Deseruit pede Poena claudo. 



CARMEN III. 

Justum et tenacem propositi virum 
Non civium ardor prava jubentium, 

Non vultus instantis tyranni 

Mente quatit solida, neque Auster 
Dux inquieti turbidus Hadriae, 
Nee fulminantis magna manus Jovis ; 

Si fractus illabatur orbis, 
Impavidum ferient ruinae. 
Hac arte Pollux et vagus Hercules 
Enisus arces attigit igneas, 

Quos inter Augustus recumbens 



278 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Purpureo bibit ore nectar. 
Hac te merentem, Bacche pater, tuae 
Vexere tigres indocili jugum 

Collo trahentes ; hac Quirinus is 

Martis equis Acheronta fugit, 
Gratum elocuta consiliantibus 
Junone divis : Ilion, Ilion 
Fatalis incestusque judex 

Et mulier peregrina vertit 20 

In pulverem, ex quo destituit deos 
Mercede pacta Laomedon, mihi 
Castaeque damnatum Minervae 
Cum populo et duce fraudulento. 
Jam nee Lacaenae splendet adulterae 25 

Famosus hospes nee Priami domus 
Perjura pugnaces Achivos 
Hectoreis opibus refringit, 
Nostrisque ductum seditionibus 
Bellum resedit. Protinus et graves 30 

Iras et invisum nepotem 

Troica quem peperit sacerdos 
Marti redonabo ; ilium ego lucidas 
Inire sedes, ducere nectaris 

Sucos, et adscribi quietis 35 

Ordinibus patiar deorum. 
Dum longus inter saeviat Ilion 
Romamque pontus, qualibet exsules 
In parte regnanto beati ; 

Dum Priami Paridisque busto 40 

Insultet armentum et catulos ferae 
Celent inultae, stet Capitolium 
Fulgens, triumphatisque possit 
Roma ferox dare jura Medis. 
Horrenda late nomen in ultimas 45 

Extendat oras, qua medius liquor 
Secernit Europen ab Afro, 



CARMINUM LIB. III. C. IV. 279 

Qua tumidus rigat arva Nilus, 
Aumm irrepertum et sic melius situm 
Quum terra celat spernere fortior, so 

Quam cogere humanos in usus 
Omne sacrum rapiente dextra. 
Quicumque mundo terminus obstitit 
Hunc tangat armis, visere gestiens 
Qua parte debacchentur ignes, 55 

Qua nebulae pluviique rores. 
Sed bellicosis fata Quiritibus 
Hac lege dico, ne nimium pii 
Rebusque fidentes avitae 

Tecta velint reparare Trojae. 60 

Trojae renascens alite lugubri 
Fortuna tristi clade iterabitur, 
Ducente victrices catervas 
Conjuge me Jovis et sorore. 
Ter si resurgat murus aeneus 65 

Auctore Phoebo, ter pereat meis 
Excisus Argivis, ter uxor 

Capta virum puerosque ploret. 
Non hoc jocosae conveniet lyrae : 
Quo, Musa, tendis ? Desine pervicax 70 

Referre sermones deorum et 
Magna modis tenuare parvis. 



CARMEN IV. 

Descende coelo et die age tibia 
Regina longum Calliope melos, 
Seu voce nunc mavis acuta, 
Seu fidibus citharaque Phoebi. 
Auditis, an me ludit amabilis 
Insania? Audire et videor pios 



:8o Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Errare per lucos amoenae 

Quos et aquae subeunt et aurae. 
Me fabulosae Vulture in Apulo 
Altricis extra limen Apuliae 10 

Ludo fatigatumque somno 

Fronde nova puerum palumbes 
Texere, mirum quod foret omnibus, 
Quicumque celsae nidum Acherontiae 

Saltusque Bantinos et arvum 15 

Pingue tenent humilis Forenti, 
Ut tuto ab atris corpore viperis 
Dormirem et ursis, ut premerer sacra 
Lauroque collataque myrto, 

Non sine dis animosus infans. 20 

Vester, Camenae, vester in arduos 
Tollor Sabinos, seu mihi frigidum 
Praeneste seu Tibur supinum 
Seu liquidae placuere Baiae. 
Vestris amicum fontibus et choris 25 

Non me Philippis versa acies retro, 
Devota non exstinxit arbos, 
Nee Sicula Palinurus unda. 
Utcumque mecum vos eritis, libens 
Insanientem navita Bosporum 30 

Tentabo et urentes arenas 
Litoris Assyrii viator ; 
Visam Britannos hospitibus feros 
Et laetum equino sanguine Concanum, 

Visam pharetratos Gelonos 35 

Et Scythicum inviolatus amnem. 
Vos Caesarem altum, militia simul • 
Fessas cohortes addidit oppidis, 
Finire quaerentem labores 

Pierio recreatis antro. 40 

Vos lene consilium et datis et dato 
Gaudetis almae. Scimus, ut impios 



CARMINUM LIB. III. C. IV. 28 1 

Titanas immanemque turmam 
Fulmine sustulerit caduco, 
Qui terram inertem, qui mare temperat 45 

Ventosum, et urbes regnaque tristia 
Divosque mortalesque turbas 
Imperio regit unus aequo. 
Magnum ilia terrorem intulerat Jovi 
Fidens juventus horrida brachiis, 5° 

Fratresque tendentes opaco 
Pelion imposuisse Olympo. 
Sed quid Typhoeus et validus Mimas, 
Aut quid minaci Porphyrion statu, 

Quid Rhoetus evulsisque truncis 55 

Enceladus jaculator audax 
Contra sonantem Palladis aegida 
Possent ruentes ? Hinc avidus stetit 
Vulcanus, hinc matrona Juno et 

Nunquam humeris positurus arcum, 60 

Qui rore puro Castaliae lavit 
Crines solutos, qui Lyciae tenet 
Dumeta natalemque silvam, 
Delius et Patareus Apollo. 
Vis consili expers mole ruit sua : 65 

Vim temperatam di quoque provehunt 
In majus ; idem odere vires 
Omne nefas animo moventes. 
Testis mearum centimanus Gyas 
Sententiarum, notus et integrae 7° 

Tentator Orion Dianae 
Virginea domitus sagitta. 
Injecta monstris Terra dolet suis 
Maeretque partus fulmine luridum 

Missos ad Orcum ; nee peredit 75 

Impositam celer ignis Aetnen, 
Incontinentis nee Tityi jecur 
Reliquit ales, nequitiae additus 



282 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Custos ; amatorem trecentae 
Pirithoum cohibent catenae. 



CARMEN V. 

Coelo Tonantem credidimus Jovem 
Regnare : praesens divus habebitur 
Augustus adjectis Britannis 
Imperio gravibusque Persis. 
Milesne Crassi conjuge barbara 
Turpis maritus vixit et hostium, 
Pro curia inversique mores ! 
Consenuit socerorum in armis 
Sub rege Medo Marsus et Apulus, 
Anciliorum et nominis et togae 
Oblitus aeternaeque Vestae, 
Incolumi Jove et urbe Roma ? 
Hoc caverat mens provida Reguli 
Dissentientis condicionibus 
Foedis et exemplo trahentis 
Perniciem veniens in aevum, 
Si non periret immiserabilis 
Captiva pubes. Signa ego Punicis 
Affixa delubris et arma 
Militibus sine caede, dixit, 
Derepta vidi ; vidi ego civium 
Retorta tergo brachia libero 
Portasque non clausas et arva 
Marte coli populata nostro. 
Auro repensus scilicet acrior 
Miles redibit. Flagitio additis 
Damnum : neque amissos colores 
Lana refert medicata fuco, 
Nee vera virtus quum semel excidit 



CARMINUM LIB. III. C. VIII. 283 

Curat reponi deterioribus. 30 

Si pugnat extricata densis 
Cerva plagis, erit ille fortis 
Qui perfidis se credidit hostibus, 
Et Marte Poenos proteret altero 

Qui lora restrictis lacertis 35 

Sensit iners timuitque mortem. 
Hie unde vitam sumeret inscius 
Pacem duello miscuit. O pudor ! 
O magna Karthago, probrosis 

Altior Italiae ruinis ! 4° 

Fertur pudicae conjugis osculum 
Parvosque natos ut capitis minor 
Ab se removisse et virilem 

Torvus humi posuisse vultum : 
Donee labantes consilio patres 45 

Firmaret auctor nunquam alias dato, 
Interque maerentes amicos 
Egregius properaret exsul. 
Atqui sciebat quae sibi barbarus 
Tortor pararet ; non aliter tamen so 

Dimovit obstantes propinquos, 
Et populum reditus morantem, 
Quam si clientum longa negotia 
Dijudicata lite relinqueret, 

Tendens Venafranos in agros 55 

Aut Lacedaemonium Tarent 



CARMEN VIII. 

Martiis caelebs quid agam Kalendis, 
Quid velint flores et acerra thuris 
Plena miraris, positusque carbo in 
Caespite vivo, 



284 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Docte sermones utriusque linguae ? 
Voveram dulces epulas et album 
Libero caprum prope funeratus 

Arboris ictu. 
Hie dies anno redeunte festus 
Corticem adstrictum pice dimovebit 
Amphorae fumum bibere institutae 

Consule Tullo. 
Sume, Maecenas, cyathos amici 
Sospitis centum, et vigiles lucernas 
Perfer in lucem ; procul omnis esto 

Clamor et ira. 
Mitte civiles super urbe curas : 
Occidit Daci Cotisonis agmen, 
Medus infestus sibi luctuosis 

Dissidet armis, 
Servit Hispanae vetus hostis orae 
Cantaber sera domitus catena ; 
Jam Scythae laxo meditantur arcu 

Cedere campis. 
Neglegens ne qua populus laboret 
Parce privatus nimium cavere ; 
Dona praesentis cape laetus horae et 

Linque severa. 



CARMEN XVI. 

Inclusam Danaen turris aenea 
Robustaeque fores et vigilum canum 
Tristes excubiae munierant satis 

Nocturnis ab adulteris, 
Si non Acrisium virginis abditae 
Custodem pavidum Juppiter et Venus 
Risissent ; fore enim tutum iter et patens 



CARMINUM LIB. III. C. XVI. 285 

Converso in pretium deo. 
Aurum per medios ire satellites 
Et perrumpere amat saxa potentius 10 

Ictu fulmineo : concidit auguris 

Argivi domus ob lucrum 
Demersa exitio ; diffidit urbium 
Portas vir Macedo et submit aemulos 
Reges muneribus \ munera navium 15 

Saevos illaqueant duces. 
Crescentem sequitur cura pecuniam 
Majorumque fames. Jure perhorrui 
Late conspicuum tollere verticem, 

Maecenas, equitum decus. 20 

Quanto quisque sibi plura negaverit, 
Ab dis plura feret : nil cupientium 
Nudus castra peto et transfuga divitum 

Partes linquere gestio, 
Contemptae dominus splendidior rei, 25 

Quam si quid quid arat impiger Apulus 
Occultare meis dicerer horreis, 

Magnas inter opes inops. 
Purae rivus aquae silvaque jugerum 
Paucorum et segetis certa fides meae 3° 

Fulgentem imperio fertilis Africae 

Fallit sorte beatior. 
Quamquam nee Calabrae mella ferunt apes 
Nee Laestrygonia Bacchus in amphora 
Languescit mihi nee pinguia Gallicis 3S 

Crescunt vellera pascuis, 
Importuna tamen pauperies abest, 
Nee si plura velim tu dare deneges. 
Contracto melius parva cupidine 

Vectigalia porrigam, 4 o 

Quam si Mygdoniis regnum Alyattei 
Campis continuem. Multa petentibus 
Desunt multa : bene est cui deus obtulit 

Parca quod satis est manu. 



286 Q. HORATII FLACCI 



CARMEN XXIV. 



Intactis opulentior 
Thesauris Arabum et divitis Indiae 

Caementis licet occupes 
Tyrrhenum omne tuis et mare Apulicum, 

Si figit adamantinos 5 

Summis verticibus dira Necessitas 

Clavos, non animum metu, 
Non mortis laqueis expedies caput. 

Campestres melius Scythae 
Quorum plaustra vagas rite trahunt domos 10 

Vivunt, et rigidi Getae 
Immetata quibus jugera liberas 

Fruges et Cererem ferunt, 
Nee cultura placet longior annua, 

Defunctumque laboribus is 

Aequali recreat sorte vicarius. 

Illic matre carentibus 
Privignis mulier temperat innocens, 

Nee dotata regit virum 
Conjux nee nitido fidit adultero. 20 

Dos est magna parentium 
Virtus et metuens alterius viri 

Certo foedere castitas ; 
Et peccare nefas aut pretium est mori. 

O quisquis volet impias 25 

Caedes et rabiem tollere civicam, 

Si quaeret Pater urbium 
Subscribi statuis, indomitam audeat 

Refrenare licentiam, 
Clarus postgenitis ; quatenus, heu nefas ! 30 

Virtutem incolumem odimus, 
Sublatam ex oculis quaerimus invidi. 



CARMINUM LIB. III. C. XXIV. 287 

Quid tristes querimoniae, 
Si non supplicio culpa reciditur ? 

Quid leges sine moribus 35 

Vanae proficiunt, si neque fervidis 

Pars inclusa caloribus 
Mundi nee Boreae finitimurn latus 

Durataeque solo nives 
Mercatorem abigunt, horrida callidi 40 

Vincunt aequora navitae, 
Magnum pauperies opprobrium jubet 

Quidvis et facere et pati 
Virtutisque viam deserit arduae? 

Vel nos in Capitolium as 

Quo clamor vocat et turba faventium, 

Vel nos in mare proximum 
Gemmas et lapides aurum et inutile, 

Summi materiem mali, 
Mittamus, scelerum si bene poenitet. 5° 

Eradenda cupidinis 
Pravi sunt elementa, et tenerae nimis 

Mentes asperioribus 
Formandae studiis. Nescit equo rudis 

Haerere ingenuus puer 55 

Venarique timet, ludere doctior, 

Seu Graeco jubeas trocho 
Seu malis vetita legibus alea, 

Quum perjura patris fides 
Consortem socium fallat et hospitem 60 

Indignoque pecuniam 
Heredi properet. Scilicet improbae 

Crescunt divitiae ; tamen 
Curtae nescio quid semper abest rei. 



2 88 Q. HORATII FLACCI 



CARMEN XXIX. 



Tyrrhena regum progenies, tibi 
Non ante verso lene merum cado 
Cum flore, Maecenas, rosarum et 
Pressa tuis balanus capillis 
Jamdudum apud me est. Eripe te morae ; 5 

Ne semper udum Tibur et Aesulae 
Declive contempleris arvum et 
Telegoni juga parricidae. 
Fastidiosam desere copiam et 
Molem propinquam nubibus arduis ; 10 

Omitte mirari beatae 

Furaum et opes strepitumque Romae. 
Plerumque gratae divitibus vices, 
Mundaeque parvo sub lare pauperum 

Coenae sine aulaeis et ostro 15 

Sollicitam explicuere frontem. 
Jam clarus occultum Andromedae pater 
Ostendit ignem, jam Procyon furit 
Et Stella vesani Leonis, 
Sole dies referente siccos. 20 

Jam pastor umbras cum grege languido 
Rivumque fessus quaerit et horridi 
Dumeta Silvani, caretque 
Ripa vagis taciturna ventis. • 
Tu civitatem quis deceat status 25 

Curas et Urbi sollicitus times 
Quid Seres et regnata Cyro 

Bactra parent Tanaisque discors. 
Prudens futuri temporis exitum 
Caliginosa nocte premit deus, 30 

Ridetque si mortalis ultra 

Fas trepidat. Quod adest memento 



CARMINUM LIB. III. C. XXIX. 289 

Componere aequus ; cetera fluminis 
Ritu feruntur, nunc medio aequore 

Cum pace delabentis Etruscum 35 

In mare, nunc lapides adesos 
Stirpesque raptas et pecus et domus 
Volventis una non sine montium 
Clamore vicinaeque silvae, 

Quum fera diluvies quietos 40 

Irritat amnes. Ille potens sui 
Laetusque deget, cui licet in diem 
Dixisse Vixi : eras vel atra 
Nube polum Pater occupato 
Vel sole puro ; non tamen irritum 45 

Quodcumque retro est emciet, neque 
Diffinget infectumque reddet 
Quod fugiens semel hora vexit. 
Fortuna saevo laeta negotio et 
Ludum insolentem ludere pertinax 50 

Transmutat incertos honores, 
Nunc mihi, nunc alii benigna. 
Laudo manentem ; si celeres quatit 
Pennas, resigno quae dedit, et mea 
Virtute me involvo probamque 55 

Pauperiem sine dote quaero. 
Non est meum, si mugiat Africis 
Malus procellis, ad miseras preces 
Decurrere, et votis pacisci 

Ne Cypriae Tyriaeque merces 60 

Addant avaro divitias mari : 
Tunc me biremis praesidio scaphae 
Tutum per Aegaeos tumultus 
Aura feret geminusque Pollux. 



19 



290 Q. HORATII FLACCI 



CARMEN XXX. 



Exegi monumentum aere perennius 
Regalique situ pyramidum altius, 
Quod non imber edax, non Aquilo impotens 
Possit diruere aut innumerabilis 
Annorum series et fuga temporum. 
Non omnis moriar, multaque pars mei 
Vitabit Libitinam : usque ego postera 
Crescam laude recens dum Capitolium 
Scandet cum tacita virgine pontifex. 
Dicar qua violens obstrepit Aufidus 
Et qua pauper aquae Daunus agrestium 
Regnavit populorum, ex humili potens, 
Princeps Aeolium carmen ad Italos 
Deduxisse modos. Sume superbiam 
Quaesitam meritis et mihi Delphica 
Lauro cinge volens, Melpomene, comam. 



LIBER QUARTUS. 

CARMEN II. 

Pindarum quisquis studet aemulari, 
Iule, ceratis ope Daedalea 
Nititur pennis vitreo daturus 

Nomina ponto. 
Monte decurrens velut amnis imbres 
Quern super notas aluere ripas 
Fervet immensusque ruit profundo 

Pindarus ore, 



CARMINUM LIB. IV. C. II. 29 1 

Laurea donandus Apollinari, 

Seu per audaces nova dithyrambos 10 

Verba devolvit numerisque fertur 

Lege solutis ; 
Seu deos regesve canit deorum 
Sanguinem per quos cecidere justa 
Morte Centauri, cecidit tremendae is 

Flamma Chimaerae ; 
Sive quos Elea domum reducit 
Palma coelestes pugilemve equumve 
Dicit et centum potiore signis 

Munere donat ; 20 

Flebili sponsae juvenemve rap turn 
Plorat et vires animumque moresque 
Aureos educit in astra nigroque 

Invidet Oreo. 
Multa Dircaeum levat aura eyenum 25 

Tendit, Antoni, quoties in altos 
Nubium tractus. Ego* apis Matinae 

More modoque 
Grata carpentis thyma per laborem 
Plurimum circa nemus uvidique 30 

Tiburis ripas operosa parvus 

Carmina fingo. 
Concines majore poeta plectro 
Caesarem quandoque trahet feroces 
Per sacrum clivum merita decorus 35 

Fronde Sygambros, 
Quo nihil majus meliusve terris 
Fata donavere bonique divi, 
Nee dabunt quamvis redeant in aurum 

Tempora priscum. 40 

Concines laetosque dies et Urbis 
Publicum ludum super impetrato 
Fortis Augusti reditu forumque 

Litibus orbum. 



292 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Turn meae si quid loquar audiendum 45 

Vocis accedet bona pars et, O Sol 
Pulcher ! o laudande ! canam, recepto 

Caesare felix. 
Teque dum procedis, io Triumphe ! 
Non semel dicemus, io Triumphe ! 50 

Civitas omnis dabimusque divis 

Thura benignis. 
Te decern tauri totidemque vaccae, 
Me tener solvet vitulus relicta 
Matre qui largis juvenescit herbis 55 

In mea vota, 
Fronte curvatos imitatus ignes 
Tertium lunae referentis ortum, 
Qua notam duxit niveus videri 

Cetera fulvus. 60 



CARMEN III. 

Quem tu, Melpomene, semel 
Nascentem placido lumine videris, 

Ilium non labor Isthmius 
Clarabit pugilem, non equus impiger 

Curru ducet Achaico 
Victorem, neque res bellica Deliis 

Ornatum foliis ducem, 
Quod regum tumidas contuderit minas, 

Ostendet Capitolio : 
Sed quae Tibur aquae fertile praefluunt 

Et spissae nemorum comae 
Fingent Aeolio carmine nobilem. 

Romae principis urbium 
Dignatur suboles inter amabiles 

Vatum ponere me choros, 



CARMINUM LIB. IV. C. IV. 293 

Et jam dente minus mordeor invido. 

O, testudinis aureae 
Dulcem quae strepitum, Pieri, temperas, 

O, mutis quoque piscibus 
Donatura cycni, si libeat, sonum, 20 

Totum muneris hoc tui est : 
Quod monstror digito praetereuntium 

Romanae fidicen lyrae, 
Quod spiro et placeo, si placeo, tuum est. 



CARMEN IV. 

Qualem ministrum fulminis alitem, 
Cui rex deorum regnum in aves vagas 
Permisit expertus fidelem 
Juppiter in Ganymede flavo, 
Olim juventas et patrius vigor 
Nido laborum propulit inscium, 
Vernique jam nimbis remotis 
Insolitos docuere nisus 
Venti paventem, mox in ovilia 
Demisit hostem vividus impetus, 
Nunc in reluctantes dracones 
Egit amor dapis atque pugnae : 
Qualemve laetis caprea pascuis 
Intenta fulvae matris ab ubere 
Jam lacte depulsum leonem 
Dente novo peritura vidit : 
Videre Raetis bella sub Alpibus 
Drusum gerentem Vindelici ; — quibus 
Mos unde deductus per omne 
Tempus Amazonia securi 
Dextras obarmet quaerere distuli, 
Nee scire fas est omnia ; — sed diu 



294 Q- HORATII FLACCI 

Lateque victrices catervae 
Consiliis juvenis revictae 
Sensere quid mens rite, quid indoles 25 

Nutrita faustis sub penetralibus 
Posset, quid Augusti paternus 
In pueros animus Nerones. 
Fortes creantur fortibus et bonis ; 
Est in juvencis, est in equis patrum 30 

Virtus, neque imbellem feroces 
Progenerant aquilae columbam,: 
Doctrina sed vim promovet insitam, 
Rectique cultus pectora roborant ; 

Utcumque defecere mores 35 

Indecorant bene nata culpae. 
Quid debeas, o Roma, Neronibus 
Testis Metaurum flumen et Hasdrubal 
Devictus et pulcher fugatis 

Ille dies Latio tenebris 40 

Qui primus alma risit adorea, ' 
Dims per urbes Afer ut Italas 
Ceu flamma per taedas vel Eurus 
Per Siculas equitavit undas. 
Post hoc secundis usque laboribus 45 

Romana pubes crevit et impio 
Vastata Poenorum tumultu 
Fana deos habuere rectos ; 
Dixitque tandem perndus Hannibal : 
Cervi luporum praeda rapacium so 

Sectamur ultro quos opimus 

Fallere et effugere est triumphus. 
Gens quae cremato fortis ab Ilio 
Jactata Tuscis aequoribus sacra 

Natosque maturosque patres 55 

Pertulit Ausonias ad urbes, 
Duris ut ilex tonsa bipennibus 
Nigrae feraci frondis in Algido, 



CARMINUM LIB. IV. C. VII. 295 

Per damna, per caedes, ab ipso 

Ducit opes animumque ferro. 60 

Non hydra secto corpore firmior 
Vinci dolentem crevit in Herculem, 
Monstrumve submisere Colchi 
Majus Echioniaeve Thebae. 
Merses profundo, pulchrior evenit : 65 

Luctere, multa proruet integrum 
Cum laude victorem geretque 
Proelia conjugibus loquenda. 
Karthagini jam non ego nuntios 
Mittam superbos : occidit, occidit 7° 

Spes omnis et fortuna nostri 

Nominis Hasdrubale interempto. 
Nil Claudiae non perficient manus, 
Quas et benigno numine Juppiter 

Defendit et curae sagaces 75 

Expediunt per acuta belli. 



CARMEN VII. 

Diffugere nives, redeunt jam gramina campis 

Arboribusque comae ; 
Mutat terra vices et decrescentia ripas 

Flumina praetereunt ; 
Gratia cum Nymphis geminisque sororibus audet 

Ducere nuda choros. 
Immortalia ne speres monet annus et almum 

Quae rapit hora diem. 
Frigora mitescunt Zephyris, ver proterit aestas 

Interitura simul 
Pomifer Auctumnus fruges effuderit, et mox 

Bruma recurrit iners. 
Damna tamen celeres reparant coelestia lunae : 



296 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Nos ubi decidimus 
Quo pius Aeneas quo dives Tullus et Ancus 

Pulvis et umbra sumus. 
Quis scit an adjiciant hodiemae crastina summae 

Tempora di superi ? 
Cuncta manus avidas fugient heredis amico 

Quae dederis animo. 
Quum semel occideris et de te splendida Minos 

Fecerit arbitria, 
Non, Torquate, genus, non te facundia, non te 

Restituet pietas ; 
Infernis neque enim tenebris Diana pudicum 

Liberat Hippolytum, 
Nee Lethaea valet Theseus abrumpere caro 

Vincula Pirithoo. 



CARMEN IX. 

Ne forte credas interitura quae 
Longe sonantem natus ad Aufidum 
Non ante vulgatas per artes 

Verba loquor socianda chordis : 
Non si priores Maeonius tenet 5 

Sedes Homerus Pindaricae latent 
Ceaeque et Alcaei minaces 

Stesichorique graves Camenae ; 
Nee si quid olim lusit Anacreon 
Delevit aetas ; spirat adhuc amor 10 

Vivuntque commissi calores 
Aeoliae fidibus puellae. 
Non sola comptos arsit adulteri 
Crines, et aurum vestibus illitum 

Mirata regalesque cultus 15 

Et comites Helene Lacaena, 



CARMINUM LIB. IV. C. IX. 297 

Primusve Teucer tela Cydonio 
Direxit arcu ; non semel Ilios 
Vexata ; non pugnavit ingens 

Idomeneus Sthenelusve solus 20 

Dicenda Musis proelia ; non ferox 
Hector vel acer Deiphobus graves 
Excepit ictus pro pudicis 

Conjugibus puerisque primus. 
Vixere fortes ante Agamemnona 25 

Multi ; sed omnes illacrimabiles 
Urgentur ignotique longa 

Nocte, carent quia vate sacro. 
Paullum sepultae distat inertiae 
Celata virtus. Non ego te meis 30 

Chartis inornatum silebo, 
Totve tuos patiar labores 
Impune, Lolli, carpere livid as 
Obliviones. Est animus tibi 

Rerumque prudens et secundis 35 

Temporibus dubiisque rectus, 
Vindex avarae fraudis, et abstinens 
Ducentis ad se cuncta pecuniae, 
Consulque non unius anni 

Sed quoties bonus atque fidus 40 

Judex honestum praetulit utili, 
Rejecit alto dona nocentium 
Vultu, per obstantes catervas 
Explicuit sua victor arma. 
Non possidentem multa vocaveris 45 

Recte beatum : rectius occupat 
Nomen beati qui deorum 
Muneribus sapienter uti 
Duramque callet pauperiem pati, 
Pej usque leto flagitium timet, 50 

Non ille pro caris amicis 
Aut patria timid us perire. 



Q. HORATII FLACCI 



CARMEN XIV. 



Quae cura patrum quaeve Quiritium 
Plenis honorum muneribus tuas, 
Auguste, virtutes in aevum 
Per titulos memoresque fastos 
Aeternet, o qua sol habitabiles 5 

Illustrat oras maxime principum ? 
Quern legis expertes Latin ae 
Vindelici didicere nuper 
Quid Marte posses. Milite nam tuo 
Drusus Genaunos, implacidum genus, 10 

Breunosque veloces, et arces 
Alpibus impositas tremendis 
Dejecit acer plus vice simplici ; 
Major Neronum mox grave proelium 

Commisit immanesque Raetos 15 

Auspiciis pepulit secundis, 
Spectandus in certamine Martio, 
Devota morti pectora liberae 
Quantis fatigaret minis ; 

Indomitas prope qualis undas 20 

Exercet Auster, Pleiadum choro 
Scindente nubes, impiger hostium 
Vexare turmas et frementem 

Mittere equum medios per ignes. 
Sic tauriformis volvitur Aufidus, 25 

Qua regna Dauni praefluit Apuli, 
Quum saevit horrendamque cultis 
Diluviem meditatur agris, 
Ut barbarorum Claudius agmina 
Ferrata vasto diruit impetu 30 

Primosque et extremos metendo 
Stravit humum, sine clade victor, 



CARMINUM LIB. IV. C. XIV. 299 

Te copias, te consilium et tuos 
Praebente divos. Nam tibi, quo die 

Portus Alexandrea supplex 35 

Et vacuam patefecit aulam, 
Fortuna lustro prospera tertio 
Belli secundos reddidit exitus, 
Laudemque et optatum peractis 

Imperiis decus arrogavit. 40 

Te Cantaber non ante domabilis 
Medusque et Indus, te profugus Scythes 
Miratur, o.tutela praesens 
Italiae dominaeque Romae. 
Te fontium qui celat origines 45 

Nilusque et Ister, te rapidus Tigris, 
Te beluosus qui remotis 

Obstrepit Oceanus Britannis, ] 
Te non paventis fun era Galliae 
Duraeque tellus audit Hiberiae, so 

Te caede gaudentes Sygambri 
Compositis venerantur armis. 



Q. HORATII FLACCI 

CARMEN SECULARR 



Phoebe silvarumque potens Diana, 
Lucidum coeli decus, o colendi 
Semper et culti, date, quae precamur 

Tempore sacro, 
Quo Sibyllini monuere versus 5 

Virgines lectas puerosque castos 
Dis quibus septem placuere colles 

Dicere carmen. 
Alme Sol, curru nitido diem qui 
Promis et celas aliusque et idem 10 

Nasceris, possis nihil urbe Roma 

Visere majus. 
Rite maturos aperire partus 
Lenis, Ilithyia, tuere matres, 
Sive tu Lucina probas vocari 15 

Seu Genitalis. 
Diva, producas subolem patrumque 
Prosperes decreta super jugandis 
Feminis prolisque novae feraci 

Lege marita, *> 

Certus undenos decies per annos 
Orbis ut cantus referatque ludos 
Ter die claro totiesque grata 

Nocte frequentes. 
Vosque veraces cecinisse, Parcae, 25 



CARMEN SECULARE. 301 

Quod semel dictum est stabilisque rerum 
Terminus servat, bona jam peractis 

Jungite fata. 
Fertilis frugum pecorisque Tellus 
Spicea donet Cererem corona ; 30 

Nutriant fetus et aquae salubres 

Et Jovis aurae. 
Condito mitis placidusque telo 
Supplices audi pueros, Apollo : 
Siderum regina bicornis audi, 35 

Luna, puellas. 
Roma si vestrum est opus, Iliaeque 
Litus Etruscum tenuere turmae, 
Jussa pars mutare Lares et urbem 

Sospite cursu, 40 

Cui per ardentem sine fraude Trojam 
Castus Aeneas patriae superstes 
Liberum munivit iter, daturus 

Plura relictis : 
Di, probos mores docili juventae, 45 

Di, senectuti placidae quietem, 
Romulae genti date remque prolemque 

Et decus omne ! 
Quaeque vos bubus veneratur albis 
Clarus Anchisae Venerisque sanguis, 50 

Impetret, bellante prior, jacentem 

Lenis in hostem ! 
Jam rnari terraque manus potentes 
Medus Albanasque timet secures, 
Jam Scythae responsa petunt, superbi 55 

Nuper, et Indi. 
Jam Fides et Pax et Honos Pudorque 
Priscus et neglecta redire Virtus 
Audet, apparetque beata pleno 

Copia cornu. 60 

Augur et fulgente decorus arcu 



302 Q. HORATII FLACCI CARMEN SECULARE. 

Phoebus acceptusque novem Camenis, 
Qui salutari levat arte fessos 

Corporis artus, 
Si Palatinas videt aequus arces 6 5 

Remque Romanam Latiumque, felix 
Alterum in lustrum meliusque semper 

Proroget aevum. 
Quaeque Aventinum tenet Algidumque, 
Quindecim Diana preces virorum 7 o 

Curet et votis puerorum arnicas 

Applicet aures. 
Haec Jovem sentire deosque cunctos 
Spem bonam certamque domum reporto, 
Doctus et Phoebi chorus et Dianae 75 

Dicere laudes. 



Q. HORATII FLACCI 

EPODON LIBER. 



CARMEN II. 

Beatus ille qui procul negotiis, 

Ut prisca gens mortalium, 
Paterna rura bobus exercet suis 

Solutus omni fenore. 
Neque excitatur classico miles truci, 

Neque horret iratum mare, 
Forumque vitat et superba civium 

Potentiorum limina. 
Ergo aut adulta vitium propagine 

Altas maritat populos, 
Aut in reducta valle mugientium 

Prospectat errantes greges, 
Inutilesque falce ramos amputans 

Feliciores inserit, 
Aut pressa puris mella condit amphoris, 

Aut tondet innrmas oves \ 
Vel quum decorum mitibus pomis caput 

Auctumnus agris extulit, 
Ut gaudet insitiva decerpens pira, 

Certantem et uvam purpurae, 
Qua muneretur te, Priape, et te, pater 

Silvane tutor fmium ! 
Libet jacere modo sub antiqua ilice, 

Modo in tenaci gramine. 



304 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Labuntur altis interim ripis aquae, 25 

Queruntur in silvis aves, 
Fontesque lymphis obstrepunt manantibus, 

Somnos quod invitet leves. 
At quum tonantis annus hibernus Jovis 

Imbres nivesque comparat, 30 

Aut trudit acres hinc et hinc multa cane 

Apros in obstantes plagas, 
Aut amite levi rara tendit retia 

Turdis edacibus dolos, 
Pavidumque leporem et advenam laqueo gruem 35 

Jucunda captat praemia. 
Quis non malarum quas amor curas habet 

Haec inter obliviscitur ? 
Quodsi pudica mulier in partem juvet 

Domum atque dulces liberos, 4 o 

Sabina qualis aut perusta solibus 

Pernicis uxor Apuli, 
Sacrum vetustis exstruat lignis focum 

Lassi sub adventum viri, 
Claudensque textis cratibus laetum pecus 45 

Distenta siccet ubera, 
Et horna dulci vina promens dolio 

Dapes inemptas apparet : 
Non me Lucrina juverint conchylia 

Magisve rhombus aut scari, 50 

Si quos Eois intonata fluctibus 

Hiems ad hoc vertat mare ; 
Non Afra avis descendat in ventrem meum 

Non attagen Ionicus 
Jucundior, quam lecta de pinguissimis 55 

Oliva ramis arborum 
Aut herba lapathi prata amantis et gravi 

Malvae salubres corpori, 
Vel agna festis caesa Terminalibus, 

Vel haedus ereptus lupo. 60 



EPOD. LIB. CARM. VII. 305 

Has inter epulas ut juvat pastas oves 

Videre properantes domum, 
Videre fessos vomerem inversum boves 

Collo trahentes languido, 
Positosque vernas, ditis examen domus, 6 5 

Circum renidentes Lares ! 
Haec ubi locutus fenerator Alphius, 

Jam jam futurus rusticus, 
Omnem redegit Idibus pecuniam, , 

Quaerit Kalendis ponere. 7 ° 



CARMEN VII. 

Quo, quo scelesti ruitis ? aut cur dexteris 

Aptantur enses conditi ? 
Parumne campis atque Neptuno super 

Fusum est Latini sanguinis, 
Non ut superbas invidae Karthaginis 

Romanus arces ureret, 
Intactus aut Britannus ut descenderet 

Sacra catenatus via, 
Sed ut secundum vota Parthorum sua 

Urbs haec periret dextera ? 
Neque hie lupis mos nee fuit leonibus 

Unquam nisi in dispar feris. 
Furor ne caecus, an rapit vis acrior, 

An culpa ? Responsum date. 
Tacent et albus ora pallor inficit 

Mentesque perculsae stupent. 
Sic est : acerba fata Romanos agunt 

Scelusque fraternae necis, 
Ut immerentis fluxit in terram Remi 

Sacer nepotibus cruor. 



304 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Labuntur altis interim ripis aquae, 25 

Queruntur in silvis aves, 
Fontesque lymphis obstrepunt manantibus, 

Somnos quod invitet leves. 
At quum tonantis annus hibernus Jovis 

Imbres nivesque comparat, 30 

Aut trudit acres hinc et hinc multa cane 

Apros in obstantes plagas, 
Aut amite levi rara tendit retia 

Turdis edacibus dolos, 
Pavidumque leporem et advenam laqueo gruem 35 

Jucunda captat praemia. 
Quis non malarum quas amor curas habet 

Haec inter obliviscitur ? 
Quodsi pudica mulier in partem juvet 

Domum atque dulces liberos, 40 

Sabina qualis aut perusta solibus 

Pernicis uxor Apuli, 
Sacrum vetustis exstruat lignis focum 

Lassi sub adventum viri, 
Claudensque textis cratibus laetum pecus 45 

Distenta siccet ubera, 
Et horna dulci vina promens dolio 

Dapes inemptas apparet : 
Non me Lucrina juverint conchylia 

Magisve rhombus aut scari, 50 

Si quos Eois intonata fluctibus 

Hiems ad hoc vertat mare ; 
Non Afra avis descendat in ventrem meum 

Non attagen Ionicus 
Jucundior, quam lecta de pinguissimis 55 

Oliva ramis arborum 
Aut herba lapathi prata amantis et gravi 

Malvae salubres corpori, 
Vel agna festis caesa Terminalibus, 

Vel haedus ereptus lupo. 60 



EPOD. LIB. CARM. VII. 305 

Has inter epulas ut juvat pastas oves 

Videre properantes domum, 
Videre fessos vomerem inversum boves 

Collo trahentes languido, 
Positosque vernas, ditis examen domus, e 5 

Circum renidentes Lares ! 
Haec ubi locutus fenerator Alphius, 

Jam jam futurus rusticus, 
Omnem redegit Idibus pecuniam, , 

Quaerit Kalendis ponere. 70 



CARMEN VII. 

Quo, quo scelesti ruitis ? aut cur dexteris 

Aptantur enses conditi ? 
Parumne campis atque Neptuno super 

Fusum est Latini sanguinis, 
Non ut superbas invidae Karthaginis 

Romanus arces ureret, 
Intactus aut Britannus ut descenderet 

Sacra catenatus via, 
Sed ut secundum vota Parthorum sua 

Urbs haec periret dextera? 
Neque hie lupis mos nee fuit leonibus 

Unquam nisi in dispar feris. 
Furorne caecus, an rapit vis acrior, 

An culpa ? Responsum date. 
Tacent et albus ora pallor inficit 

Mentesque perculsae stupent. 
Sic est : acerba fata Romanos agunt 

Scelusque fraternae necis, 
Ut immerentis fluxit in terram Remi 

Sacer nepotibus cruor. 



308 Q. HORATII FLACCI EPOD. LIB. CARM. XVI. 

Suamque pulla ficus ornat arborem, 
Mella cava manant ex ilice, montibus altis 

Levis crepante lympha desilit pede. 
Illic injussae veniunt ad mulctra capellae, 

Refertque tenta grex amicus ubera ; 50 

Nee vespertinus circumgemit ursus ovile, 

Neque intumescit alma viperis humus. 
Pluraque felices mirabimur : ut neque largis 

Aquosus Eurus arva radat imbribus, 
Pinguia nee siccis urantur semina glebis, 55 

Utrumque rege temperante coelitum. 
Non hue Argoo contendit remige pinus, 

Neque impudica Colchis intulit pedem, 
Non hue Sidonii torserunt cornua nautae 

Laboriosa nee cohors Ulixei. 60 

Nulla nocent pecori contagia, nullius astri 

Gregem aestuosa torret impotentia. 
Juppiter ilia piae secrevit litora genti, 

Ut inquinavit aere tempus aureum ; 
Aere, dehinc ferro duravit secula : quorum 65 

Piis secunda vate me datur fuga. 



Q. HORATII FLACCI 

SATIRAE. 

LIBER PRIMUS. 

SATIRA I. 

Qui fit, Maecenas, ut nemo quam sibi sortem 
Seu ratio dederit seu fors objecerit ilia 
Contentus vivat, laudet diversa sequentes ? 

fortunati mercatores ! gravis annis 
Miles ait multo jam fractus membra labore. 
Contra mercator, navem jactantibus Austris : 
Militia est potior. Quid enim, concurritur : horae 
Momento cita mors venit aut victoria laeta. 
Agricolam laudat juris legumque peritus, 

Sub galli cantum consultor ubi ostia pulsat. 

1 lie datis vadibus qui rure extractus in urbem est 
Solos felices viventes clamat in urbe. 

Cetera de genere hoc, adeo sunt multa, loquacem 
Delassare valent Fabium. Ne te morer, audi 
Quo rem deducam. Si quis Deus, En ego, dicat, 
Jam faciam quod vultis : eris tu, qui modo miles, 
Mercator ; tu, consultus modo, rusticus : hinc vos, 
Vos hinc mutatis discedite partibus : Eja ! 
Quid statis? — nolint. Atqui licet esse beatis. 
Quid causae est merito quin illis Juppiter ambas 
Iratus buccas inflet, neque se fore posthac 
Tarn facilem dicat votis ut praebeat aurem ? 



3IO Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Praeterea ne sic, ut qui jocularia, ridens 

Percurram — quamquam ridentem dicere verum 

Quid vetat ? ut pueris olim dant crustula blandi 25 

Doctores, elementa velint ut discere prima — 

Sed tamen amoto quaeramus seria ludo. 

I lie gravem duro terram qui vertit aratro, 

Perfidus hie caupo, miles, nautaeque per omne 

Audaces mare qui currunt, hac mente laborem 30 

Sese ferre, series ut in otia tuta recedant, 

Aiunt, quum sibi sint congesta cibaria : sicut 

Parvula, nam exemplo est, magni formica laboris 

Ore trahit quodcumque potest atque addit acervo, 

Quern struit haud ignara ac non incauta futuri. 35 

Quae, simul inversum contristat Aquarius annum, 

Non usquam prorepit et illis utitur ante 

Quaesitis sapiens ; quum te neque fervidus aestus 

Demoveat lucro, neque hiems, ignis, mare, ferrum, 

Nil obstet tibi dum ne sit te ditior alter. 4° 

Quid juvat immensum te argenti pondus et auri 

Furtim defossa timidum deponere terra ? — 

Quod si comminuas vilem redigatur ad assem. — 

At ni id fit quid habet pulchri constructus acervus ? 

Milia frumenti tua triverit area centum, 45 

Non tuus hoc capiet venter plus ac meus : ut si 

Reticulum panis venales inter onusto 

Forte vehas humero, nihilo plus accipias quam 

Qui nil portarit. Vel die quid referat intra 

Naturae fines viventi, jugera centum an 50 

Mille aret ? — At suave est ex magno tollere acervo. — 

Dum ex parvo nobis tantundem haurire relinquas, 

Cur tua plus laudes cumeris granaria nostris ? 

Ut tibi si sit opus liquidi non amplius urna, 

Vel cyatho, et dicas, Magno de flumine malim 53 

Quam ex hoc fonticulo tantundem sumere. Eo fit 

Plenior ut si quos delectet copia justo 

Cum ripa simul avulsos ferat Aufidus acer. 



SATIRARUM LIB. I. SAT. I. 311 

At qui tantuli eget quanto est opus is neque limo 

Turbatam haurit aquam neque vitam amittit in undis. 60 

At bona pars hominum decepta cupidine falso, 

Nil satis est, inquit ; quia tanti quantum habeas sis. 

Quid facias illi ? Jubeas miserum esse libenter 

Quatenus id facit ; ut quidam memoratur Athenis 

Sordidus ac dives, populi contemnere voces 6s 

Sic solitus : Populus me sibilat ; at mihi plaudo 

Ipse domi simul ac nummos contemplor in area. 

Tantalus a labris sitiens fugientia captat 

Flumina .... Quid rides ? mutato nomine de te 

Fabula narratur : congestis undique saccis 7° 

Indormis inhians et tamquam parcere sacris 

Cogeris aut pictis tamquam gaudere tabellis. 

Nescis quo valeat nummus ? quern praebeat usum ? 

Panis ematur, olus, vini sextarius, adde 

Quis humana sibi doleat natura negatis. 75 

An vigilare metu exanimem, noctesque diesque 

Formidare malos fures, incendia, servos 

Ne te compilent fugientes, hoc juvat ? Horum 

Semper ego optarim pauperrimus esse bonorum. — 

At si condoluit tentatum frigore corpus, 80 

Aut alius casus lecto te affixit, habes qui 

Adsideat, fomenta paret, medicum roget ut te 

Suscitet ac gnatis reddat carisque propinquis. — 

Non uxor salvum te vult, non films ; omnes 

Vicini oderunt, noti, pueri atque puellae. 8s 

Miraris, quum tu argento post omnia ponas, 

Si nemo praestet quern non merearis amorem ? 

An si cognatos, nullo natura labore 

Quos tibi dat, retinere velis servareque amicos, 

Infelix operam perdas ? ut si quis asellum 90 

In Campo doceat parentem currere frenis. 

Denique sit finis quaerendi, quumque habeas plus 

Pauperiem metuas minus et finire laborem 

Incipias, parto quod avebas, ne facias quod 



312 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Ummidius quidam — non longa est fabula — dives 95 

Ut metiretur nummos ; ita sordidus ut se 

Non unquam servo melius vestiret ; adusque 

Supremum tempus, ne se penuria victus 

Opprimeret metuebat. At hunc liberta securi 

Divisit medium, fortissima Tyndaridarum. — 100 

•Quid mi igitur suades ? ut vivam Maenius ? aut sic 

Ut Nomentanus ? — Pergis pugnantia secum 

Frontibus adversis componere : non ego avarum 

Quum veto te fieri vappam jubeo ac nebulonem. 

Est inter Tanain quiddam socerumque Viselli. 105 

Est modus in rebus, sunt certi denique fines, 

Quos ultra citraque nequit consistere rectum. 

Illuc unde abii redeo, nemo ut avarus 

Se probet ac potius laudet diversa sequentes, 

Quodque aliena capella gerat distentius uber no 

Tabescat, neque se majori pauperiorum 

Turbae comparet, hunc atque hunc superare laboret. 

Sic festinanti semper locupletior obstat, 

Ut, quum carceribus missos rapit ungula currus, 

Instat equis auriga suos vincentibus, ilium 115 

Praeteritum temnens extremos inter euntem. 

Inde fit, ut raro, qui se vixisse beatum 

Dicat, et exacto contentus tempore vita 

Cedat uti conviva satur, reperire queamus. 

Jam satis est. Ne me Crispini scrinia lippi 120 

Compilasse putes, verbum non amplius addam. 



SATIRA V. 

Egressum magna me excepit Aricia Roma 
Hospitio modico ; rhetor comes Heliodorus, 
Graecorum longe doctissimus ; inde Forum Appi, 
Differtum nautis cauponibus atque malignis. 



SATIRARUM LIB. I. SAT. V. 313 

Hoc iter ignavi divisimus, altius ac nos 5 

Praecinctis unura ; minus est gravis Appia tardis. 

Hie ego propter aquam, quod erat deterrima, ventri 

Indico bellum, coenantes haud animo aequo 

Exspectans comites. Jam nox inducere terris 

Umbras et coelo diffundere signa parabat ; 10 

Turn pueri nautis, puens convicia nautae 

Ingerere. Hue appelle ! Trecentos inseris : ohe 

Jam satis est ! Dum aes exigitur, dum mula ligatur, 

Tota abit hora. Mali culices ranaeque palustres 

Avertunt somnos, absentem ut cantat amicam 15 

Multa prolutus vappa nauta atque viator 

Certatim. Tandem fessus dormire viator 

Incipit, ac missae pastum retinacula mulae 

Nauta piger saxo religat stertitque supinus. 

J am que dies aderat, nil quum procedere lintrem 20 

Sentimus, donee cerebrosus prosilit unus 

Ac mulae nautaeque caput lumbosque saligno 

Fuste dolat : quarta vix demum exponimur hora. 

Ora manusque tua lavimus, Feronia, lympha. 

Milia turn pransi tria repimus atque subimus 25 

Impositum saxis late candentibus Anxur. 

Hue venturus erat Maecenas optimus atque 

Cocceius, missi magnis de rebus uterque 

Legati, aversos soliti componere amicos. 

Hie oculis ego nigra meis collyria lippus 30 

Illinere. Interea Maecenas advenit atque 

Cocceius Capitoque simul Fonteius, ad unguem 

Factus homo, Antoni non ut magis alter amicus. 

Fundos Aufidio Lusco praetore libenter 

Linquimus, insani ridentes praemia scribae, 35 

Praetextam et latum clavum prunaeque batillum. 

In Mamurrarum lassi deinde urbe manemus, 

Murena praebente domum, Capitone culinam. 

Postera lux oritur multo gratissima ; namque 

Plotius et Varius Sinuessae Virgiliusque 4 o 



314 Q- HORATII FLACCI 

Occurrunt, animae quales neque candidiores 

Terra tulit neque quis me sit devinctior alter. 

O qui complexus et gaudia quanta fuerunt ! 

Nil ego contulerim jucundo sanus amico. 

Proxima Campano ponti quae villula tectum 45 

Praebuit, et parochi quae debent ligna salemque. 

Hinc muli Capuae clitellas tempore ponunt. 

Lusum it Maecenas, dormitum ego Virgiliusque ; 

Namque pila lippis inimicum et ludere crudis. 

Hinc nos Cocceii recipit plenissima- villa 50 

Quae super est Caudi cauponas. Nunc mihi paucis 

Sarmenti scurrae pugnam Messique Cicirrhi, 

Musa, velim memores, et quo patre natus uterque 

Contulerit lites. Messi clarum genus Osci ; 

Sarmenti domina exstat : ab his majoribus orti 55 

Ad pugnam venere. Prior Sarmentus : Equi te 

Esse feri similem dico. Ridemus, et ipse 

Messius, Accipio, caput et movet. O, tua cornu 

Ni foret exsecto frons, inquit, quid faceres, quum 

Sic mutilus miniteris ? At illi foeda cicatrix 60 

Setosam laevi frontem turpaverat oris. 

Campanum in morbum, in faciem permulta jocatus, 

Pastorem saltaret uti Cyclopa rogabat : 

Nil illi larva aut tragicis opus esse cothurnis. 

Multa Cicirrhus ad haec : donasset jamne catenam 65 

Ex Voto Laribus, quaerebat ; scriba quod esset, 

Nihilo deterius dominae jus esse. Rogabat 

Denique cur unquam fugisset, cui satis una 

Farris libra foret gracili sic tamque pusillo. 

Prorsus jucunde coenam produximus illam. 70 

Tendimus hinc recta Beneventum, ubi sedulus hospes 

Paene macros arsit dum turdos versat in igni : 

Nam vaga per veterem dilapso flamma culinam 

Vulcano summum properabat lambere tectum. 

Convivas avidos coenam servosque timentes 75 

Turn rapere, atque omnes restinguere velle videres. 






SATIRARUM LIB. I. SAT. VI. 315 

Incipit ex illo montes Apulia notos 

Ostentare mihi, quos torret Atabulus et quos 

Nunquam erepsemus nisi nos vicina Trivici 

Villa recepisset, lacrimoso non sine fumo, 80 

Udos cum foliis ramos urente camino. 

Quattuor hinc rapimur viginti et milia rhedis. 

Mansuri oppidulo quod versu dicere non est, 

Signis perfacile est : venit vilissima rerum 

Hie aqua ; sed panis longe pulcherrimus, ultra 85 

Callidus ut soleat humeris portare viator ; 

Nam Canusi lapidosus, aquae non ditior urna, 

Qui locus a forti Diomede est conditus olim. 

Flentibus hinc Varius discedit maestus amicis. 

Inde Rubos fessi pervenimus, utpote longum 90 

Carpentes iter et factum corruptius imbri. 

Postera tempestas melior, via pejor ad usque 

Bari moenia piscosi ; dein Gnatia Lymphis 

Iratis exstructa dedit risusque jocosque, 

Dum flamma sine thura liquescere limine sacro, 95 

Persuadere cupit. Credat Judaeus Apella, 

Non ego ; namque deos didici securum agere aevum, 

Nee, si quid miri faciat natura, deos id 

Tristes ex alto coeli demittere tecto. 

Brundusium longae finis chartaeque viaeque est. 100 



SATIRA VI. 

Non quia, Maecenas, Lydorum quidquid Etruscos 

Incoluit fines nemo generosior est te, 

Nee quod avus tibi maternus fuit atque paternus 

Olim qui magnis legionibus imperitarent, 

Ut plerique solent, naso suspendis adunco 

Ignotos, ut me libertino patre natum. 

Quum referre negas quali sit quisque parente 



316 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Natus dum ingenuus, persuades hoc tibi vere, 

Ante potestatem Tulli atque ignobile regnum 

Multos saepe viros nullis majoribus ortos 10 

Et vixisse probos amplis et honoribus auctos ; 

Contra Laevinum, Valeri genus unde superbus 

Tarquinius regno pulsus fugit, unius assis 

Non unquam pretio pluris licuisse, notante 

Judice quo nosti populo, qui stultus honores 15 

Saepe dat indignis et famae servit ineptus, 

Qui stupet in titulis et imaginibus. Quid oportet 

Nos facere a vulgo longe longeque remotos ? 

Namque esto populus Laevino mallet honorem 

Quam Decio mandare novo, censorque moveret 20 

Appius ingenuo si non essem patre natus : 

Vel merito, quoniam in propria non pelle quiessem. 

Sed fulgente trahit constrictos Gloria curru 

Non minus ignotos generosis. Quo tibi, Tilli, 

Sumere depositum clavum fierique tribuno ? 25 

Invidia accrevit privato quae minor esset. 

Nam ut quisque insanus nigris medium impediit crus 

Pellibus et latum demisit pectore clavum, 

Audit continuo : Quis homo hie est ? quo patre natus ? 

Ut si qui aegrotet quo morbo Barrus, haberi 30 

Ut cupiat formosus, eat quacumque puellis 

Injiciat curam quaerendi singula, quali 

Sit facie, sura, quali pede, dente, capillo : 

Sic qui promittit cives, urbem sibi curae, 

Imperium fore et Italiam, delubra deorum, 35 

Quo patre sit natus, num ignota matre inhonestus, 

Omnes mortales curare et quaerere cogit 

Tune Syri, Damae aut Dionysi nlius, audes 

Dejicere e saxo cives aut tradere Cadmo? — 

At Novius collega gradu post me sedet uno ; 40 

Namque est ille pater quod erat meus. — Hoc tibi Paullus 

Et Messalla videris ? At hie, si plostra ducenta 

Concurrantque foro tria funera, magna sonabit 



SATIRARUM LIB. I. SAT. VI. 317 

Cornua quod vincatque tubas ; saltern tenet hoc nos. — 

Nunc ad me redeo libertino patre natum, 45 

Quem rodunt omnes libertino patre natum, 

Nunc, quia sum tibi, Maecenas, convictor ; at olim, 

Quod mihi pareret legio Romana tribune 

Dissimile hoc illi est ; quia non ut forsit honorem 

Jure mihi invideat quivis ita te quoque amicum, 50 

Praesertim cautum dignos assumere prava 

Ambitione procul. Felicem dicere non hoc 

Me possum casu quod te sortitus amicum ; 

Nulla etenim mihi te fors obtulit : optimus olim 

Virgilius, post hunc Varius dixere quid essem. 55 

Ut veni coram singultim pauca locutus, 

Infans namque pudor prohibebat plura profari, 

Non ego me claro natum patre, non ego circum 

Me Satureiano vectari rura caballo, 

Sed quod eram narro. Respondes ut tuus est mos 60 

Pauca : abeo ; et revocas nono post mense jubesque 

Esse in amicorum numero. Magnum hoc ego duco 

Quod placui tibi qui turpi secernis honestum, 

Non patre praeclaro sed vita et pectore puro. 

Atqui si vitiis mediocribus ac mea paucis 65 

Mendosa est natura alioqui recta, velut si 

Egregio inspersos reprehendas corpore naevos ; 

Si neque avaritiam neqUe sordes aut mala lustra 

Objiciet vere quisquam mihi, purus et insons — 

Ut me collaudem — si et vivo carus amicis, 70 

Causa fuit pater his, qui macro pauper agello 

Noluit in Flavi ludum me mittere, magni 

Quo pueri magnis e centurionibus orti, 

Laevo suspensi loculos tabulamque lacerto, 

Ibant octonis referentes Idibus aera ; 75 

Sed puerum est ausus Romam portare docendum 

Artes quas doceat quivis eques atque senator 

Semet prognatos. Vestem servosque sequentes, 

In magno ut populo, si qui vidisset, avita 



3l8 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Ex re praeberi sumptus mihi crederet illos. 80 

Ipse mihi custos incorruptissimus omnes 

Circum doctores aderat. Quid multa ? Pudicum, 

Qui primus virtutis honos, servavit ab omni 

Non solum facto verum opprobrio quoque turpi ; 

Nee timuit sibi ne vitio quis verteret olim 85 

Si praeco parvas aut, ut fuit ipse, coactor 

Mercedes sequerer ; neque ego essem questus : at hoc nunc 

Laus illi debetur et a me gratia major. 

Nil me poeniteat sanum patris hujus, eoque 

Non, ut magna dolo factum negat esse suo pars 90 

Quod non ingenuos habeat clarosque parentes, 

Sic me defendam. Longe mea discrepat istis 

Et vox et ratio : nam si natura juberet 

A certis annis aevum remeare peractum 

Atque alios legere ad fastum quoscumque parentes 95 

Optaret sibi quisque, meis contentus honestos 

Fascibus et sellis nollem mihi sumere, demens 

Judicio vulgi, sanus fortasse tuo, quod 

Nollem onus haud unquam solitus portare molestum. 

Nam mihi continuo major quaerenda foret res 100 

Atque salutandi plures, ducendus et unus 

Et comes alter uti ne solus rusve peregreve 

Exirem ; plures calones atque caballi 

Pascendi, ducenda petorrita. Nunc mihi curto 

Ire licet mulo vel si libet usque Tarentum, 105 

Mantica cui lumbos onere ulceret atque eques armos : 

Objiciet nemo sordes mihi quas tibi, Tilli, 

Cum Tiburte via praetorem quinque sequuntur 

Te pueri lasanum portantes oenophorumque. 

Hoc ego commodius quam tu, praeclare senator, no 

Milibus atque aliis vivo. Quacumque libido est, 

Incedo solus, percontor quanti olus ac far ; 

Fallacem Circum vespertinumque pererro 

Saepe Forum ; adsisto divinis ; inde domum me 

Ad porri et ciceris refero laganique catinum ; us 



SATIRARUM LIB. I. SAT. IX. 319 

Coena ministratur pueris tribus, et lapis albus 

Pocula cum cyatho duo sustinet ; adstat echinus 

Vilis, cum patera guttus, Campana supellex. 

Deinde eo dormitum, non sollicitus mihi quod eras 

Surgendum sit mane, obeundus Marsya, qui se 120 

Vultum ferre negat Noviorum posse minoris. 

Ad quartam jaceo ; post hanc vagor ; aut ego, lecto 

Aut scripto quod me taciturn juvet, ungor olivo, 

Non quo fraudatis immundus Natta lucernis. 

Ast ubi me fessum sol acrior ire lavatum 125 

Admonuit, fugio Campum lusumque trigonem. 

Pransus non avide, quantum interpellet inani 

Ventre diem durare, domesticus otior. Haec est 

Vita solutorum misera ambitione gravique ; 

His me consolor victurum suavius ac si 130 

Quaestor avus, pater atque meus patruusque fuisset. 



SATIRA IX. 

I bam forte via Sacra, sicut meus est mos, 

Nescio quid meditans nugarum, totus in illis : 

Accurrit quidam notus mihi nomine tantum, 

Arreptaque manu, Quid agis, dulcissime rerum ? — 

Suaviter ut nunc est, inquam, et cupio omnia quae vis. 5 

Quum assectaretur : Num quid vis ? occupo. At ille, 

Noris nos, inquit j docti sumus. Hie ego, Pluris 

Hoc, inquam, mihi eris. Misere discedere quaerens 

Ire modo ocius, interdum consistere, in aurem 

Dicere nescio quid puero, quum sudor ad imos 10 

Manaret talos. O te, Bolane, cerebri 

Felicem ! aiebam tacitus j quum quidlibet ille 

Garriret, vicos, urbem laudaret. Ut illi 

Nil respondebam, Misere cupis, inquit, abire ; 

Jamdudum video j sed nil agis j usque tenebo ; is 



320 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Persequar : hinc quo nunc iter est tibi ? — Nil opus est te 

Circumagi ; quendam volo visere non tibi notum ; 

Trans Tiberim longe cubat is prope Caesaris hortos. — 

Nil habeo quod agam et non sum piger ; usque sequar te. — 

Demitto auriculas ut iniquae mentis asellus, 20 

Quum gravius dorso subiit onus. Incipit ille : 

Si bene me novi, non Viscum pluris amicum, 

Non Varium facies ; nam quis me scribere plures 

Aut citius possit versus ? quis membra movere 

Mollius ? Invideat quod et Hermogenes ego canto. 25 

Interpellandi locus hie erat : Est tibi mater, 

Cognati, quis te salvo est opus ? — Haud mihi quisquam. 

Omnes composui. — Felices ! nunc ego resto. 

Confice ; nam que instat fatum mihi triste Sabella 

Quod puero cecinit divina mota anus urna : 30 

Hunc neque dira venena nee hosticus auferet ensis 

Nee laterum dolor aut tussis nee tarda podagra ; 

Garrulus hunc quando consumet cumque ; loquaces 

Si sapiat vitet simul atque adoleverit aetas. — 

Ventum erat ad Vestae, quarta jam parte diei 35 

Praeterita, et casu tunc respondere vadato 

Debebat, quod ni fecisset perdere litem. 

Si me amas, inquit, paulum hie ades. — Inteream si 

Aut valeo stare aut novi civilia jura ; 

Et propero quo scis. — Dubius sum quid faciam, inquit, 40 

Tene relinquam an rem. — Me sodes. — Non faciam, ille ; 

Et praecedere coepit. Ego ut contendere durum est 

Cum victore sequor. Maecenas quomodo tecum ? 

Hinc repetit ; paucorum hominum et mentis bene sanae ; 

Nemo dexterius fortuna est usus. Haberes 45 

Magnum adjutorem posset qui ferre secundas, 

Hunc hominem velles si tradere ; dispeream ni 

Submosses omnes. — Non isto vivimus illic 

Quo tu rere modo ; domus hac nee purior ulla est 

Nee magis his aliena malis ; nil mi officit unquam, 50 

Ditior hie aut est quia doctior ; est locus uni 



SATIRARUM LIB. I. SAT. IX. 32 1 

Cuique suus. — Magnum narras, vix credibile ! — Atqui 

Sic habet. — Accendis, quare cupiam magis illi 

Proximus esse. — Velis tantummodo : quae tua virtus, 

Expugnabis ; et est qui vinci possit, eoque 55 

Difficiles aditus primos habet. — Haud mihi deero : 

Muneribus servos corrumpam ; non hodie si 

Exclusus fuero desistam ; tempora quaeram, 

Occurram in triviis, deducam. Nil sine magno 

Vita labore dedit mortalibus. — Haec dum agit, ecce 60 

Fuscus Aristius occurrit, mihi cams et ilium 

Qui pulchre nosset. Consistimus. Unde venis ? et 

Quo tendis ? rogat et respondet. Vellere coepi 

Et prensare manu lentissima brachia, nutans, 

Distorquens oculos, ut me eriperet. Male salsus 65 

Ridens dissimulare : meum jecur urere bilis. 

Certe nescio quid secreto velle loqui te 

Aiebas mecum. — Memini bene, sed meliore 

Tempore dicam ; hodie tricesima sabbata : vin tu 

Curtis Judaeis oppedere ? — Nulla mihi, inquam, 7 o 

Religio est. — At mi ; sum paulo infirmior, unus 

Multorum ; ignosces ; alias loquar. — Huncine solem 

Tarn nigrum surrexe mihi ! Fugit improbus ac me 

Sub cultro linquit. Casu venit obvius illi 

Adversarius et : Quo tu turpissime ? magna 75 

Inclamat voce ; et Licet antestari? Ego vero 

Oppono auriculam. Rapit in jus ; clamor utrimque ; 

Undique concursus. Sic me servavit Apollo. 



32 2 Q. HORATII FLACCI 



LIBER SECUNDUS. 



SATIRA VI. 

Hoc erat in votis : modus agri non ita magnus, 

Hortus ubi et tecto vicinus jugis aquae fons 

Et paulum silvae super his foret. Auctius atque 

Di melius fecere. Bene est. Nil amplius oro, 

Maia nate, nisi ut propria haec mihi munera faxis. 

Si neque majorem feci ratione mala rem 

Nee sum facturus vitio culpave minorem ; 

Si veneror stultus nihil horum : O si angulus ille 

Proximus accedat qui nunc denormat agellum ! 

O si urnam argenti fors quae mihi monstret, ut illi 

Thesauro invento qui mercenarius agrum 

Ilium ipsum mercatus aravit, dives amico 

Hercule ! si quod adest gratum juvat, hac prece te oro : 

Pingue pecus domino facias et cetera praeter 

Ingenium, utque soles custos mihi maximus adsis. 

Ergo ubi me in montes et in arcem ex urbe removi, 

Quid prius illustrem satiris musaque pedestri ? 

Nee mala me ambitio perdit nee plumbeus Auster 

Auctumnusque gravis, Libitinae quaestus acerbae. 

Matutine pater, seu Jane libentius audis, 

Unde homines operum primos vitaeque labores 

Instituunt, sic dis placitum, tu carminis esto 

Principium. Romae sponsorem me rapis. Eja, 

Ne prior officio quisquam respondeat, urge. 

Sive Aquilo radit terras seu bruma nivalem 

Interiore diem gyro trahit, ire necesse est. 

Postmodo, quod mi obsit clare certumque locuto, 

Luctandum in turba et facienda injuria tardis. 

Quid vis, insane, et quas res agis ? improbus urget 



SATIRARUM LIB. II. SAT. VI. 323 

Iratis precibus ; tu pulses omne quod obstat, 3 ° 

Ad Maecenatem memori si mente recurras ? 

Hoc juvat et melli est ; non mentiar. At simul atras 

Ventum est Esquilias aliena negotia centum 

Per caput et circa saliunt latus. — Ante secundam 

Roscius orabat sibi adesses ad Puteal eras. — 35 

De re communi scribae magna atque nova te 

Orabant hodie meminisses, Quinte, reverti. — 

Imprimat his cura Maecenas signa tabellis. — 

Dixeris, Experiar ■ Si vis, potes, addit et instat. 

Septimus octavo propior jam fugerit annus 40 

Ex quo Maecenas me coepit habere suorum 

In numero ; dumtaxat ad hoc, quern tollere rheda 

Vellet iter faciens et cui concredere nugas 

Hoc genus : Hora quota est ? Thrax est Gallina Syro par ? 

Matutina parum cautos jam frigora mordent ; 45 

Et quae rimosa bene deponuntur in aure. 

Per to turn hoc tempus subjectior in diem et horam 

Invidiae noster. Ludos spectaverat una, 

Luserat in Campo : Fortunae nlius ! omnes. 

Frigidus a Rostris manat per compita rumor : 5° 

Quicumque obvius est me consulit : O bone, nam te 

Scire deos quoniam propius contingis oportet ; 

Numquid de Dacis audisti ? — Nil equidem. — Ut tu 

Semper eris derisor ! — At omnes di exagitent me 

Si quidquam. — Quid, militibus promissa Triquetra 55 

Praedia Caesar an est Itala tellure daturus ? 

Jurantem me scire nihil mirantur ut unum 

Scilicet egregii mortalefn altique silenti. 

Perditur haec inter misero lux non sine votis : 

O rus, quando ego te adspiciam ? quandoque licebit 60 

Nunc veterum libris, nunc somno et inertibus horis 

Ducere sollicitae jucunda oblivia vitae ? 

O quando faba Pythagorae cognata simulque 

Uncta satis pingui ponentur oluscula lardo ? 

O noctes coenaeque deum ! quibus ipse meique 65 



324 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Ante Larem proprium vescor vernasque procaces 

Pasco libatis dapibus. Prout cuique libido est 

Siccat inaequales calices conviva, solutus 

Legibus insanis, seu quis capit acria fortis 

Pocula seu modicis uvescit laetius. Ergo 70 

Sermo oritur, non de villis domibusve alienis, 

Nee male necne Lepos saltet ; sed quod magis ad nos 

Pertinet et nescire malum est agitamus : utrumne 

Divitiis homines an sint virtute beati ; 

Quidve ad amicitias, usus rectumne, trahat nos ; 75 

Et quae sit natura boni summumque quid ejus. 

Cervius haec inter vicinus garrit aniles 

Ex re fabellas. Si quis nam laudat Arelli 

Sollicitas ignarus opes, sic incipit : Olim 

Rusticus urbanum murem mus paupere fertur 80 

Accepisse cavo, veterem vetus hospes amicum, 

Asper et attentus quaesitis, ut tamen artum 

Solveret hospitiis animum. Quid multa ? neque ille 

Sepositi ciceris nee longae invidit avenae, 

Aridum et ore ferens acinum semesaque lardi 85 

Frusta dedit, cupiens varia fastidia coena 

Vincere tangentis male singula dente superbo ; 

Quum pater ipse domus palea porrectus in horna 

Esset ador loliumque, dapis meliora relinquens. 

Tandem urbanus ad hunc : Quid te juvat, inquit, amice, 90 

Praerupti nemoris patientem vivere dorso ? 

Vis tu homines urbemque feris praeponere silvis ? 

Carpe viam, mihi crede, comes ; terrestria quando 

Mortales animas vivunt sortita, neque ulla est 

Aut magno aut parvo leti fuga : quo, bone, circa, 95 

Dum licet, in rebus jucundis vive beatus ; 

Vive memor quam sis aevi brevis. Haec ubi dicta 

Agrestem pepulere domo levis exsilit ; inde 

Ambo propositum peragunt iter, urbis aventes 

Moenia nocturni subrepere. Jamque tenebat 100 

Nox medium coeli spatium quum ponit uterque 



SATIRARUM LIB. II. SAT. VI. 

In locuplete domo vestigia, rubro ubi cocco 
Tincta super lectos canderet vestis eburnos, 
Multaque de magna superessent fercula coena, 
Quae procul exstructis inerant hesterna canistris. 
Ergo ubi purpurea porrectum in veste locavit 
Agrestem, veluti succinctus cursitat hospes 
Continuatque dapes nee non verniliter ipsis 
Fungitur officiis, praelambens omne quod affert. 
Ille Cubans gaudet mutata sorte bonisque 
Rebus agit laetum convivam, quum subito ingens 
Valvarum strepitus lectis excussit utrumque. 
Currere per totum pavidi conclave, magisque 
Exanimes trepidare, simul domus alta Molossis 
Personuit canibus. Turn rusticus : Haud mihi vita 
Est opus hac, ait, et valeas ; me silva cavusque 
Tutus ab insidiis tenui solabitur ervo. 



325 



105 



Q. HORATII FLACCI 

EPISTOLAE. 

LIBER PRIMUS. 
EPISTOLA II. 

Trojani belli scriptorem, maxime Lolli, 

Dum tu declaims Romae, Praeneste relegi ; 

Qui quid sit pulchrum, quid turpe, quid utile, quid non, 

Planius ac melius Chrysippo et Crantore dicit. 

Cur ita crediderim, nisi quid te detinet, audi. 

Fabula qua Paridis propter narratur amorem 

Graecia Barbariae lento collisa duello 

Stultorum regum et populorum continet aestus. 

Antenor censet belli praecidere causam : 

Quid Paris ? Ut salvus regnet vivatque beatus 

Cogi posse negat. Nestor componere lites 

Inter Peliden festinat et inter Atriden : 

Hunc amor, ira quidem communiter urit utrumque. 

Quidquid delirant reges plectuntur Achivi. 

Seditione, dolis, scelere atque libidine et ira 

Iliacos intra muros peccatur et extra. 

Rursus quid virtus et quid sapientia possit 

Utile proposuit nobis exemplar Ulixen, 

Qui domitor Trojae multorum providus urbes 

Et mores hominum inspexit, latumque per aequor, 

Dum sibi dum sociis reditum parat, aspera multa 

Pertulit adversis rerum immersabilis undis. 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. I. EPIST. 327 

Sirenum voces et Circae pocula nosti ; 

Quae si cum sociis stultus cupidusque bibisset, 

Sub domina meretrice fuisset turpis et excors, 25 

Vixisset canis immundus vel arnica luto sus. 

Nos numerus sumus et fruges consumere nati, 

Sponsi Penelopae, nebulones, Alcinoique 

In cute curanda plus aequo operata juventus, 

Cui pulchrum fuit in medios dormire dies et 3° 

Ad strepitum citharae cessatum ducere curam. 

Ut jugulent homines surgunt de nocte latrones : 

Ut te ipsum serves non expergisceris ? Atqui 

Si noles sanus curres hydropicus ; et ni 

Posces ante diem librum cum lumine, si non 35 

Intendes animum studiis et rebus honestis, 

Invidia vel amore vigil torquebere. Nam cur 

Quae laedunt oculos festinas demere, si quid 

Est animum differs curandi tempus in annum? 

Dimidium facti qui coepit habet : sapere aude ; 40 

Incipe. Qui recte vivendi prorogat horam 

Rusticus exspectat dum defluat amnis ; at ille 

Labitur et labetur in omne volubilis aevum. 

Quaeritur argentum puerisque beata creandis 

Uxor, et incultae pacantur vomere silvae : 45 

Quod satis est cui contingit nil amplius optet 

Non domus et fundus, non aeris acervus et auri 

Aegroto domini deduxit corpore febres, 

Non animo curas. Valeat possessor oportet 

Si comportatis rebus bene cogitat uti. 50 

Qui cupit aut metuit juvat ilium sic domus et res 

Ut lippum pictae tabulae, fomenta podagram, 

Auriculas citharae collecta sorde dolentes. 

Sincerum est nisi vas, quodcumque infundis acescit. 

Sperne voluptates, nocet empta dolore voluptas. 55 

Semper avarus eget : certum voto pete finem. 

Invidus alterius macrescit rebus opimis : 

Invidia Siculi non invenere tyranni 



328 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Majus tormentum. Qui non moderabitur irae 

Infectum volet esse dolor quod suaserit et mens, 60 

Dum poenas odio per vim festinat inulto. 

Ira furor brevis est : animum rege, qui nisi paret 

Imperat : hunc frenis, hunc tu compesce catena. 

Fingit equum tenera docilem cervice magister 

Ire viam qua monstret eques ; venaticus, ex quo 65 

Tempore cervinam pellem latravit in aula, 

Militat in silvis catulus. Nunc adbibe puro 

Pectore verba, puer, nunc te melioribus offer. 

Quo semel est imbuta recens servabit odorem 

Testa diu. Quod si cessas aut strenuus anteis, 70 

Nee tardum opperior nee praecedentibus insto. 



EPISTOLA X. 

Urbis amatorem Fuscum salvere jubemus 
Ruris amatores, hac in re scilicet una 
Multum dissimiles, ad cetera paene gemelli ; 
Fraternis animis quidquid negat alter et alter ; 
Annuimus pariter vetuli notique columbi. 
Tu nidum servas ; ego laudo ruris amoeni 
Rivos et musco circumlita saxa nemusque. 
Quid quaeris ? Vivo et regno simul ista reliqui 
Quae vos ad coelum fertis rum ore secundo : 
Utque sacerdotis fugitivus liba recuso ; 
Pane egeo jam mellitis potiore placentis. 
Vivere naturae si convenienter oportet 
Ponendaeque domo quaerenda est area primum, 
Novistine locum potiorem rure beato ? 
Est ubi plus tepeant hiemes, ubi gratior aura 
Leniat et rabiem Canis et momenta Leonis, 
Quum semel accepit solem furibundus acutum ? 
Est ubi divellat somnos minus invida cura ? 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. I. EPIST. X. 329 

Deterius Libycis olet aut nitet herba lapillis ? 

Purior in vicis aqua tendit rumpere plumbum 20 

Quam quae per pronum trepidat cum murmure rivum ? 

Nempe inter varias nutritur silva column as, 

Laudaturque domus longos quae prospicit agros. 

Naturam expellas furca tamen usque recurret, 

Et mala perrumpet furtim fastidia victrix. 25 

Non qui Sidonio contendere callidus ostro 

Nescit Aquinatem potantia vellera fucum 

Certius accipiet damnum propiusque medullis, 

Quam qui non poterit vero distinguere falsum. 

Quern res plus nimio delectavere secundae, 3° 

Mutatae quatient. Si quid mirabere pones 

Invitus. Fuge magna ; licet sub paupere tecto 

Reges et regum vita praecurrere amicos. 

Cervus equum pugna melior communibus herbis 

Pellebat, donee minor in certamine longo 35 

Imploravit opes hominis frenumque recepit ; 

Sed postquam victor violens discessit ab hoste 

Non equitem dorso, non frenum depulit ore. 

Sic qui pauperiem veritus potiore metallis 

Libertate caret, dominum vehit improbus atque 4 o 

Serviet aeternum, quia parvo nesciet uti. 

Cui non conveniet sua res, ut calceus olim, 

Si pede major erit subvertet, si minor uret. 

Laetus sorte tua vives sapienter, Aristi, 

Nee me dimittes incastigatum ubi plura 45 

Cogere quam satis est ac non cessare videbor. 

Imperat aut servit collecta pecunia cuique, 

Tortum digna sequi potius quam ducere funem. 

Haec tibi dictabam post fanum putre Vacunae, 

Excepto quod non simul esses cetera laetus. 5 o 



33° Q- HORATII FLACCI 



EPISTOLA XI. 

Quid tibi visa Chios, Bullati, notaque Lesbos, 

Quid concinna Samos, quid Croesi regia Sardes, 

Smyrna quid et Colophon ? Majora minorave fama, 

Cunctane prae Campo et Tiberino flumine sordent ? 

An venit in votum Attalicis ex urbibus una, s 

An Lebedum laudas odio maris atque viarum ? 

Scis Lebedus quid sit : Gabiis desertior atque 

Fidenis vicus ; tamen illic vivere vellem, 

Oblitusque meorum obliviscendus et illis 

Neptunum procul-e terra spectare furentem. 10 

Sed neque qui Capua Romam petit imbre lutoque 

Adspersus volet in caupona vivere ; nee qui 

Frigus collegit furnos et balnea laudat 

Ut fortunatam plene praestantia vitam. 

Nee si te validus jactaverit Auster in alto, 15 

Idcirco navem trans Aegaeum mare vendas. 

Incolumi Rhodos et Mytilene pulchra facit quod 

Paenula solstitio, campestre nivalibus auris, 

Per brumam Tiberis, Sextili mense caminus. 

Dum licet ac vultum servat fortuna benignum, 20 

Romae laudetur Samos et Chios et Rhodos absens. 

Tu quamcumque deus tibi fortunaverit horam 

Grata sume manu, neu dulcia differ in annum, 

Ut quocumque loco fueris vixisse libenter 

Te dicas : nam si ratio et prudentia curas, 25 

Non locus effusi late maris arbiter aufert, 

Coelum non animum mutant qui trans mare currunt 

Strenua nos exercet inertia ; navibus atque 

Quadrigis petimus bene vivere. Quod petis hie est, 

Est Ulubris, animus si te non deficit aequus. 30 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. I. EPIST. XVI. 33 1 



EPISTOLA XVI. 



Ne perconteris fundus meus, optime Quinti, 

Arvo pascat herum an baccis opulentet olivae, 

Pomisne et pratis an amicta vitibus ulmo, 

Scribetur tibi forma loquaciter et situs agri. 

Continui montes ni dissocientur opaca 5 

Valle, sed ut veniens dextrum latus adspiciat Sol, 

Laevum discedens curru fugiente vaporet. 

Temperiem laudes. Quid, si rubicunda benigni 

Corna vepres et pruna ferant, si quercus et ilex 

Multa fruge pecus multa dominum juvet umbra, 10 

Dicas adductum propius frondere Tarentum. 

Fons etiam rivo dare nomen idoneus, ut nee 

Frigidior Thracam nee purior ambiat Hebrus, 

Infirmo capiti fluit utilis, utilis alvo. 

Hae latebrae dulces, etiam si credis amoenae, is 

Incolumen tibi me praestant Septembribus horis. 

Tu recte vivis si curas esse quod audis. 

Jactamus jampridem omnis te Roma beatum; 

Sed vereor ne cui de te plus quam tibi credas, 

Neve putes alium sapiente bonoque beatum, 20 

Neu si te populus sanum recteque valentem 

Dictitet occultam febrem sub tempus edendi 

Dissimules, donee manibus tremor incidat unctis. 

Stultorum incurata pud or malus ulcera celat. 

Si quis bella tibi terra pugnata marique 25 

Dicat et his verbis vacuas permulceat aures : 

Tene magis salvum populus velit an populum tu 

Servet in ambiguo qui consulit et tibi et urbi 

Juppiter ; Augusti laudes agnoscere possis : 

Cum pateris sapiens emendatusque vocari, 30 

Respondesne tuo die sodes nomine ? Nempe 

Vir bonus et prudens dici delector ego ac tu. 



332 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Qui dedit hoc hodie eras si volet auferet, ut si 

Detulerit fasces indigno detrahet idem. 

Pone, meum est : inquit. Pono tristisque recedo. 35 

Idem si clamet furem, neget esse pudicum, 

Contendat laqueo collum pressisse paternum, 

Mordear opprobriis falsis mutemque colores ? 

Falsus honor juvat et mendax infamia terret 

Quern nisi mendosum et medicandum ? Vir bonus est quis ? 

Qui consulta patrum, qui leges juraque servat, 4 i 

Quo multae magnaeque secantur judice lites, 

Quo res sponsore et quo causae teste tenentur. 

Sed videt hunc omnis domus et vicinia tota 

Introrsum turpem, speciosum pelle decora. 45 

Nee furtum feci nee fugi, si mihi dicat 

Servus, Habes pretium, loris non ureris, aio. 

Non hominem occidi. — Non pasces in cruce corvos. — 

Sum bonus et frugi. — Renuit negitatque Sabellus : 

Cautus enim metuit foveam lupus accipiterque 50 

Suspectos laqueos et opertum miluus hamum. 

Oderunt peccare boni virtutis amore ; 

Tu nihil admittes in te formidine poenae : 

Sit spes fallendi, miscebis sacra profanis ; 

Nam de mille fabae modiis quum surripis unum, 55 

Damnum est non facinus mihi pacto lenius isto. 

Vir bonus, omne forum quern spectat et omne tribunal, 

Quandocumque deos vel porco vel bove placat, 

Jane pater ! clare, clare quum dixit, Apollo ! 

Labra movet metuens audiri : Pulchra Laverna, 60 

Da mihi fallere, da justo sanctoque videri, 

Noctem peccatis et fraudibus objice nubem. 

Qui melior servo, qui liberior sit avarus, 

In triviis fixum quum se dimittit ob assem, 

Non video ; nam qui cupiet metuet quoque ; porro, 65 

Qui metuens vivet liber mihi non erit unquam. 

Perdidit arma, locum virtutis deseruit, qui 

Semper in augenda festinat et obruitur re. 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. I. EPIST. XX. 



333 



Vendere quum possis captivum occidere noli ; 

Serviet utiliter : sine pascat durus aretque, 7 o 

Naviget ac mediis hiemet mercator in undis ; 

Annonae prosit ; portet frumenta penusque. 

Vir bonus et sapiens audebit dicere : Pentheu, 

Rector Thebarum, quid me perferre patique 

Indignum coges ? — Adimam bona. — Nempe pecus, rem, 75 

Lectos, argentum : tollas licet. — In manicis et 

Compedibus saevo te sub custode tenebo. — 

Ipse deus simul atque volam me solvet. — Opinor 

Hoc sentit : Moriar ; mors ultima linea rerum est. 



EPISTOLA XX. 

Vertumnum Janumque, liber, spectare videris, 

Scilicet ut prostes Sosiorum pumice mundus. 

Odisti claves et grata sigilla pudico ; 

Paucis ostendi gemis et communia laudas, 

Non ita nutritus. Fuge quo descendere gestis. 5 

Non erit emisso reditus tibi. Quid miser egi ? 

Quid volui ? dices ubi quis te laeserit ; et scis 

In breve te cogi quum plenus languet amator. 

Quodsi non odio peccantis desipit augur, 

Carus eris Romae donee te deserat aetas ; 10 

Contrectatus ubi manibus sordescere vulgi 

Coeperis, aut tineas pasces taciturnus inertes, 

Aut fugies Uticam aut vinctus mitteris Ilerdam. 

Ridebit monitor non exauditus, ut ille 

Qui male parentem in rupes protrusit asellum i 5 

Iratus : quis enim invitum servare laboret ? 

Hoc quoque te manet, ut pueros elementa docentem 

Occupet extremis in vicis balba senectus. 

Quum tibi sol tepidus plures admoverit aures, 

Me, libertino natum patre et in tenui re, ?o 



334 Q- HORATII FLACCI 

Majores pennas nido extendisse loqueris, 

Ut quantum generi demas virtutibus addas ; 

Me primis Urbis belli placuisse domique ; 

Corporis exigui, praecanum, solibus aptum, 

Irasci celerem, tamen ut placabilis essem. 25 

Forte meum si quis te percontabitur aevum, 

Me quater undenos sciat implevisse Decembres 

Collegam Lepidum quo duxit Lollius anno. 



LIBER SECUNDUS. 

EPISTOLA I. 

Quum tot sustineas et tanta negotia solus, 

Res Italas armis tuteris, moribus ornes, 

Legibus emendes, in publica commoda peccem 

Si longo sermone morer tua tempora, Caesar. 

Romulus et Liber pater et cum Castore Pollux, 5 

Post ingentia facta deorum in templa recepti, 

Dum terras hominumque colunt genus, aspera bella 

Componunt, agros assignant, oppida condunt, 

Ploravere suis non respondere favorem 

Speratum meritis. Diram qui contudit hydram 10 

Notaque fatali portenta labore subegit, 

Comperit invidiam supremo fine domari. 

Urit enim fulgore suo qui praegravat artes 

Infra se positas ; exstinctus amabitur idem. 

Praesenti tibi maturos largimur honores, 15 

Jurandasque tuum per nomen ponimus aras, 

Nil oriturum alias, nil ortum tale fatentes. 

Sed tuus hie populus, sapiens et Justus in uno, 

Te nostris ducibus, te Graiis anteferendo, 

Cetera nequaquam simili ratione modoque 20 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. II. EPIST. I. 335 

Aestimat, et nisi quae terris semota suisque 

Temporibus defuncta videt, fastidit et odit ; 

Sic fautor veterum ut tabulas peccare vetantes 

Quas bis quinque viri sanxerunt, foedera regum 

Vel Gabiis vel cum rigidis aequata Sabinis, 25 

Pontificum libros, annosa volumina vatum, 

Dictitet Albano Musas in monte locutas. 

Si quia Graecorum sunt antiquissima quaeque 

Scripta vel optima Romani pensantur eadem 

Scriptores trutina, non est quod multa loquamur ; 30 

Nil intra est oleam, nil extra est in nuce duri ; 

Venimus ad summum fortunae ; pingimus atque 

Psallimus et luctamur Achivis doctius unctis. 

Si meliora dies ut vina poemata reddit, 

Scire velim chartis pretium quotus arroget annus. 35 

Scriptor abhinc annos centum qui decidit inter 

Perfectos veteresque referri debet, an inter 

Viles atque novos ? Excludat jurgia finis. 

Est vetus atque probus centum qui perficit annos. 

Quid, qui deperiit minor uno mense vel anno, 40 

Inter quos referendus erit ? veteresne poetas, 

An quos et praesens et postera respuat aetas ? 

Iste quidem veteres inter ponetur honeste 

Qui vel mense brevi vel toto est junior anno. 

Utor permisso caudaeque pilos ut equinae 45 

Paulatim vello, et demo unum, demo et item unum, 

Dum cadat elusus ratione mentis acervi 

Qui redit in fastos et virtutem aestimat annis, 

Miraturque nihil nisi quod Libitina sacravit. 

Ennius et sapiens et fortis et alter Homerus, 50 

Ut critici dicunt, leviter curare videtur 

Quo promissa cadant et somnia Pythagorea. 

Naevius in manibus non est et mentibus haeret 

Paene recens ? Adeo sanctum est vetus omne poema. 

Ambigitur quoties uter utro sit prior, aufert 55 

Pacuvius docti famam senis, Accius alti, 



33^ Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Dicitur Afrani toga convenisse Menandro, 

Plautus ad exemplar Siculi properare Epicharmi, 

Vincere Caecilius gravitate, Terentius arte. 

Hos ediscit et hos arto stipata theatro 60 

Spectat Roma potens ; habet hos numeratque poetas 

Ad nostrum tempus Livi scriptoris ab aevo. 

Interdum vulgus rectum videt, est ubi peccat. 

Si veteres ita miratur laudatque poetas 

Ut nihil anteferat nihil illis comparet, errat : 65 

Si quaedam nimis antique, si pleraque dure 

Dicere credit eos, ignave multa fatetur, 

Et sapit et mecum facit et Jove judicat aequo. 

Non equidem insector delendaque carmina Livi 

Esse reor, memini quae plagosum mihi parvo 7° 

Orbilium dictare ; sed emendata videri 

Pulchraque et exactis minimum distantia miror ; 

Inter quae verbum emicuit si forte decorum, et 

Si versus paulo concinnior unus et alter, 

Injuste totum ducit venditque poema. 75 

Indignor quidquam reprehendi, non quia crasse 

Compositum illepideve putetur, sed quia nuper ; 

Nee veniam antiquis sed honorem et praemia posci. 

Recte necne crocum floresque perambulet Attae 

Fabula si dubitem, clament perisse pudorem 80 

Cuncti paene patres, ea quum reprehend ere coner 

Quae gravis Aesopus, quae doctus Roscius egit : 

Vel quia nil rectum nisi quod placuit sibi ducunt, 

Vel quia turpe putant parere minoribus, et quae 

Imberbes didicere senes perdenda fateri. 85 

Jam Saliare Numae carmen qui laudat, et illud 

Quod mecum ignorat solus vult scire videri, 

Ingeniis non ille favet plauditque sepultis, 

Nostra sed impugnat, nos nostraque lividus odit. 

Quod si tarn Graecis novitas invisa fuisset 9° 

Quam nobis, quid nunc esset vetus ? aut quid haberet 

Quod legeret tereretque viritim publicus usus ? 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. II. EPIST. I. 337 

Ut primum positis nugari Graecia bellis 

Coepit et in vitium fortuna labier aequa, 

Nunc athletarum studiis, nunc arsit equorum, 95 

Marmoris aut eboris fabros aut aeris amavit, 

Suspendit picta vultum mentemque tabella, 

Nunc tibicinibus, nunc est gavisa tragoedis ; 

Sub nutrice puella velut si luderet infans, 

Quod cupide petiit mature plena reliquit. 100 

Quid placet aut odio est quod non mutabile credas ? 

Hoc paces habuere bonae ventique secundi. 

Romae dulce diu fuit et sollemne reclusa 

Mane domo vigilare, clienti promere jura, 

Cautos nominibus rectis expendere nummos, to S 

Majores audire, minori dicere, per quae 

Crescere res posset, minui damnosa libido. 

Mutavit mentem populus levis et calet uno 

Scribendi studio ; puerique patresque severi 

Fronde comas vincti coenant et carmina dictant. no 

Ipse ego qui nullos me affirmo scribere versus 

Invenior Parthis mendacior, et prius orto 

Sole vigil calamum et chartas et scrinia posco. 

Navim agere ignarus navis timet ; abrotonum aegro 

Non audet nisi qui didicit dare ; quod medicorum est n S 

Promittunt medici ; tractant fabrilia fabri : 

Scribimus indocti doctique poemata passim. 

Hie error tamen et levis haec insania quantas 

Virtutes habeat sic collige : vatis avarus 

Non temere est animus ; versus amat, hoc studet unum j 120 

Detrimenta, fugas servorum, incendia ridet ; 

Non fraudem socio puerove incogitat ullam 

Pupillo ; vivit siliquis et pane secundo ; 

Militiae quamquam piger et malus, utilis urbi, 

Si das hoc, parvis quoque rebus magna juvari. I25 

Os tenerum pueri balbumque poeta figurat, 

Torquet ab obscoenis jam nunc sermonibus aurem, 

Mox etiam pectus praeceptis format amicis, 



$3% Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Asperitatis et invidiae corrector et irae ; 

Recte facta refert, orientia tempora notis 130 

Instruit exemplis, inopem solatur et aegrum. 

Castis cum pueris ignara puella mariti 

Disceret unde preces vatem ni Musa dedisset ? 

Poscit opem chorus et praesentia numina sentit, 

Coelestes implorat aquas docta prece blandus, 135 

Avertit morbos, metuenda pericula pellit, 

Impetrat et pacem et locupletem frugibus annum. 

Carmine di superi placantur, carmine Manes. 

Agricolae prisci, fortes parvoque beati, 

Condita post frumenta levantes tempore festo 140 

Corpus et ipsum animum spe finis dura ferentem, 

Cum sociis operum, pueris et conjuge fida, 

Tellurem porco, Silvanum lacte piabant, 

Floribus et vino Genium memorem brevis aevi. 

Fescennina per hunc inventa licentia morem 14s 

Versibus alternis opprobria rustica fudit, 

Libertasque recurrentes accepta per annos 

Lusit amabiliter, donee jam saevus apertam 

In rabiem coepit verti jocus et per honestas 

Ire domos impune minax. Doluere cruento 150 

Dente lacessiti ; fuit intactis quoque cura 

Condicione super communi ; quin etiam lex 

Poenaque lata malo quae nollet carmine quemquam 

Describi ; vertere modum, formidine fustis 

Ad bene dicendum delectandumque redacti. 155 

Graecia capta ferum victorem cepit et artes 

Intulit agresti Latio : sic horridus ille 

Defluxit numerus Saturnius et grave virus 

Munditiae pepulere ; sed in longum tamen aevum 

Manserunt hodieque manent vestigia ruris. 160 

Serus enim Graecis admovit acumina chartis, 

Et post Punica bella quietus quaerere coepit 

Quid Sophocles et Thespis et Aeschylus utile ferrent. 

Tentavit quoque rem, si digne vertere posset, 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. II. EPIST. I. 339 

Et placuit sibi, natura sublimis et acer : 165 

Nam spirat tragicum satis et feliciter audet, 

Sed turpem putat inscite metuitque lituram. 

Creditur ex medio quia res arcessit habere 

Sudoris minimum, sed habet comoedia tanto 

Plus oneris quanto veniae minus. Adspice, Plautus 170 

Quo pacto partes tutetur amantis ephebi, 

Ut patris attenti, lenonis ut insidiosi ; 

Quantus sit Dossennus edacibus in parasitis, 

Quam non adstricto percurrat pulpita socco ; 

Gestit enim nummum in loculos demittere, post hoc 175 

Securus cadat an recto stet fabula talo. 

Quern tulit ad scenam ventoso Gloria curru 

Exanimat lentus spectator, sedulus inflat : 

Sic leve, sic parvum est, animum quod laudis avarum 

Submit aut reficit Valeat res ludicra si me 180 

Palma negata macrum, donata reducit opimum. 

Saepe etiam audacem fugat hoc terretque poetam, 

Quod numero plures, virtute et honore minores, 

Indocti stolidique et depugnare parati 

Si discordet eques, media inter carmina poscunt 185 

Aut ursum aut pugiles : his nam plebecula plaudit. 

Verum equitis quoque jam migravit ab aure voluptas 

Omnis ad incertos oculos et gaudia van a. 

Quattuor aut plures aulaea premuntur in horas, 

Dum fugiunt equitum turmae peditumque catervae ; 190 

Mox trahitur manibus regum fortuna retortis, 

Esseda festinant, pilenta, petorrita, naves, 

Captivum portatur ebur, captiva Corinthus. 

Si foret in terris rideret Democritus, seu 

Diversum confusa genus panthera camelo, 195 

Sive elephas albus vulgi converteret ora ; 

Spectaret populum ludis attentius ipsis, 

Ut sibi praebentem mimo spectacula plura ; 

Scriptores autem narrare putaret asello 

Fabellam surdo. Nam quae pervincere voces 200 



34° Q- HORATII FLACCI 

Evaluere sonum referunt quern nostra theatra ? 

Garganum mugire putes nemus aut mare Tuscum, 

Tanto cum strepitu ludi spectantur et artes 

Divitiaeque peregrinae, quibus oblitus actor 

Cum stetit in scena concurrit dextera laevae. 205 

Dixit adhuc aliquid ? Nil sane. Quid placet ergo ? 

Lana Tarentino violas imitata veneno. 

Ac ne forte putes me quae facere ipse recusem 

Quum recte tractent alii laudare maligne ; 

Ille per extentum funem mihi posse videtur 210 

Ire poeta, meum qui pectus inaniter angit, 

Irritat, mulcet, falsis terroribus implet, 

Ut magus, et modo me Thebis, modo ponit Athenis. 

Verum age et his qui se lectori credere malunt 

Quam spectatoris fastidia ferre superbi 2x5 

Curam redde brevem, si munus Apolline dignum 

Vis complere libris et vatibus addere calcar, 

Ut studio majore petant Helicona virentem. 

Multa quidem nobis facimus mala saepe poetae, — 

Ut vineta egomet caedam mea, — quum tibi librum 220 

Sollicito damus aut fesso • quum laedimur unum 

Si quis amicorum est ausus reprehendere versum ; 

Quum loca jam recitata revolvimus irrevocati ; 

Quum lamentamur non apparere labores 

Nostros et tenui deducta poemata filo ; 225 

Quum speramus eo rem venturam ut simul atque 

Carmina rescieris nos fingere commodus ultro 

Arcessas, et egere vetes, et scribere cogas. 

Sed tamen est operae pretium cognoscere, quales 

Aedituos habeat belli spectata domique 230 

Virtus, indigno non committenda poetae. 

Gratus Alexandro regi Magno fuit ille 

Choerilus, incultis qui versibus et male natis 

Rettulit acceptos, regale nomisma, Philippos. 

Sed veluti tractata notam labemque remittunt 23s 

Atramenta, fere scriptores carmine foedo 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. II. EPIST. I. 341 

Splendida facta linunt. Idem rex ille poema 

Qui tarn ridiculum tarn care prodigus emit, 

Edicto vetuit ne quis se praeter Apellen 

Pingeret, aut alius Lysippo duceret aera 240 

Fortis Alexandri vultum simulantia. Quodsi 

Judicium subtile videndis artibus illud 

Ab libros et ad haec Musarum dona vocares, 

Boeotum in crasso jurares aere natum. 

At neque dedecorant tua de se judicia atque 24s 

Munera, quae multa dantis cum laude tulerunt 

Dilecti tibi Virgilius Variusque poetae ; 

Nee magis expressi vultus per aenea signa, 

Quam per vatis opus mores animique virorum 

Clarorum apparent. Nee sermones ego mallem 250 

Repentes per humum quam res componere gestas, 

Terrarumque situs et flumina dicere, et arces 

Montibus impositas, et barbara regna, tuisque 

Auspiciis totum confecta duella per orbem, 

Claustraque custodem pacis cohibentia Janum, 255 

Et formidatam Parthis te principe Romam, 

Si quantum cuperem possem quoque ; sed neque parvum 

Carmen majestas recipit tua nee meus audet 

Rem tentare pudor quam vires ferre recusent. 

Sedulitas autem stulte quern diligit urget, 260 

Praecipue quum se numeris commendat et arte : 

Discit enim citius meminitque libentius illud 

Quod quis deridet, quam quod probat et veneratur. 

Nil moror officium quod me gravat, ac neque ficto 

In pejus vultu proponi cereus usquam, 265 

Nee prave factis decorari versibus opto, 

Ne rubeam pingui donatus munere, et una 

Cum scriptore meo, capsa porrectus aperta, 

Deferar in vicum vendentem thus et odores 

Et piper et quidquid chartis amicitur ineptis. 270 



342 Q. HORATII FLACCI 



EPISTOLA II. 

Flore, bono claroque fidelis amice Neroni, 

Si quis forte velit puerum tibi vendere natum 

Tibure vel Gabiis, et tecum sic agat : Hie et 

Candidus et talos a vertice pulcher ad imos 

Fiet eritque tuus nummorum millibus octo, 5 

Verna ministeriis ad nutus aptus heriles, 

Litterulis Graecis imbutus, idoneus arti 

Cuilibet ; argilla quidvis imitaberis uda ; 

Quin etiam canet indoctum sed dulce bibenti. 

Multa fidem promissa levant, ubi plenius aequo 10 

Laudat venales qui vult extrudere merces. 

Res urget me nulla : meo sum pauper in aere. 

Nemo hoc mangonum faceret tibi ; non temere a me 

Quivis ferret idem. Semel hie cessavit et, ut fit, 

In scalis latuit metuens pendentis habenae. 15 

Des nummos, excepta nihil te si fuga laedat ; — 

Ille ferat pretium poenae securus, opinor. 

Prudens emisti vitiosum ; dicta tibi est lex : 

Insequeris tamen hunc et lite moraris iniqua? 

Dixi me pigrum proficiscenti tibi, dixi 20 

Talibus ofhciis prope mancum, ne mea saevus 

Jurgares ad te quod epistola nulla rediret. 

Quid turn profeci mecum facientia jura 

Si tamen attentas ? Quereris super hoc etiam, quod 

Exspectata tibi non mittam carmina mendax. 25 

Luculli miles collecta viatica multis 

Aerumnis, lassus dum noctu stertit, ad assem 

Perdiderat ; post hoc vehemens lupus et sibi et hosti . 

Iratus pariter, jejunis dentibus acer, 

Praesidium regale loco dejecit, ut aiunt, 30 

Summe munito et multarum divite rerum. 

Clarus ob id factum donis ornatur honestis, 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. II. EPIST. II. 343 

Accipit et bis dena super sestertia nummum. 

Forte sub hoc tempus castellum evertere praetor 

Nescio quod cupiens, hortari coepit eundem 35 

Verbis quae timido quoque possent addere mentem : 

I, bone, quo virtus tua te vocat, i pede fausto, 

Grandia laturus meritorum praemia. Quid stas ? 

Post haec ille catus quantumvis rusticus : Ibit, 

Ibit eo quo vis qui zonam perdidit, inquit. 40 

Romae nutriri mihi contigit atque doceri 

Iratus Graiis quantum nocuisset Achilles. 

Adjecere bonae paullo plus artis Athenae, 

Scilicet ut vellem curvo dignoscere rectum, 

Atque inter silvas Academi quaerere verum. 45 

Dura sed emovere loco me tempora grato, 

Civilisque rudem belli tulit aestus in arma 

Caesaris Augusti non responsura lacertis. 

Unde simul primum me dimisere Philippi, 

Decisis humilem pennis inopemque paterni S o 

Et laris et fundi, paupertas impulit audax, 

Ut versus facerem ; sed quod non desit habentem 

Quae poterunt unquam satis expurgare cicutae, 

Ni melius dormire putem quam scribere versus ? 

Singula de nobis anni praedantur euntes : 55 

Eripuere jocos, venerem, convivia, ludum ; 

Tendunt extorquere poemata : quid faciam vis ? 

Denique non omnes eadem mirantur amantque : 

Carmine tu gaudes, hie delectatur iambis, 

Ille Bioneis sermonibus et sale nigro. 60 

Tres mihi convivae prope dissentire videntur, 

Poscentes vario multum diversa palato. 

Quid dem ? quid non dem ? renuis tu quod jubet alter ; 

Quod petis id sane est invisum acidumque duobus. 

Praeter cetera, me Romaene poemata censes 65 

Scribere posse inter tot curas totque labores ? 

Hie sponsum vocat, hie auditum scripta relictis 

Omnibus officiis ; cubat hie in colle Quirini, 



344 Q- HORATII FLACCI 

Hie extremo in Aventino, visendus uterque ; 

Intervalla vides humane commoda. Verum 70 

Purae sunt plateae, nihil ut meditantibus obstet. 

Festinat calidus mulis gerulisque redemptor, 

Torquet nunc lapidem, nunc ingens machina tignum, 

Tristia robustis luctantur funera plaustris, 

Hac rabiosa fugit canis, hac lutulenta ruit sus : 75 

I nunc et versus tecum meditare canoros. 

Scriptorum chorus omnis amat nemus et fugit urbem, 

Rite cliens Bacchi somno gaudentis et umbra : 

Tu me inter strepitus nocturnos atque diurnos 

Vis canere et contracta sequi vestigia vatum ? so 

Ingenium sibi quod vacuas desumpsit Athenas, 

Et studiis anno septem dedit insenuitque 

Libris et curis, statua taciturnius exit 

Plerumque et risu populum quatit : hie ego rerum 

Fluctibus in mediis et tempestatibus urbis 85 

Verba lyrae motura sonum connectere digner ? 

Frater erat Romae consulti rhetor, ut alter 

Alterius sermone meros audiret honores, 

Gracchus ut hie illi, foret huic ut Mucius ille, 

Qui minus argutos vexat furor iste poetas ? . 90 

Carmina compono, hie elegos. — Mirabile visu 

Caelatumque novem Musis opus ! — Adspice primum, 

Quanto cum fastu, quanto molimine circum- 

Spectemus vacuam Romanis vatibus aedem ! 

Mox etiam, si forte vacas, sequere et procul audi, 95 

Quid ferat et quare sibi nectat uterque coronam. 

Caedimur et totidem plagis consumimus hostem 

Lento Samnites ad lumina prima duello. 

Discedo Alcaeus puncto illius ; ille meo quis ? 

Quis nisi Callimachus ? Si plus adposcere visus, 100 

Fit Mimnermus, et optivo cognomine crescit. 

Multa fero ut placem genus irritabile vatum, 

Quum scribo et supplex populi sufTragia capto ; 

Idem, finitis studiis et mente recepta, 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. II. EPIST. II. 345 

Obturem patulas impune legentibus aures. 105 

Ridentur mala qui componunt carmina ; verum 

Gaudent scribentes et se venerantur, et ultro, 

Si taceas, laudant quidquid scripsere beati. 

At qui legitimum cupiet fecisse poema 

Cum tabulis animum censoris sumet honesti; no 

Audebit quaecumque parum splendoris habebunt 

Et sine pondere erunt et honore indigna ferentur 

Verba movere loco, quamvis invita recedant 

Et versentur adhuc intra penetralia Vestae. 

Obscurata diu populo bonus eruet atque 115 

Proferet in lucem speciosa vocabula rerum, 

Quae priscis memorata Catonibus atque Cethegis 

Nunc situs informis premit et deserta vetustas ; 

Adsciscet nova quae genitor produxerit usus. 

Vehemens et liquidus puroque simillimus amni 120 

Fundet opes Latiumque beabit divite lingua ; 

Luxuriantia compescet, nimis aspera sano 

Levabit cultu, virtute carentia toilet, 

Ludentis speciem dabit et torquebitur, ut qui 

Nunc Satyrum, nunc agrestem Cyclopa movetur. 125 

Praetulerim scriptor delirus inersque videri, 

Dum mea delectent mala me vel denique fallant, 

Quam sapere et ringi. Fuit haud ignobilis Argis, 

Qui se credebat miros audire tragoedos, 

In vacuo laetus sessor plausorque theatro ; 130 

Cetera qui vitae servaret munia recto 

More, bonus sane vicinus, amabilis hospes, 

Comis in uxorem, posset qui ignoscere servis 

Et signo laeso non insanire lagenae, 

Posset qui rupem et puteum vitare patentem. 135 

Hie ubi cognatorum opibus curisque refectus 

Expulit helleboro morbum bilemque meraco 

Et redit ad sese : Pol me occidistis, amici, 

Non servastis, ait, cui sic extorta voluptas 

Et demptus per vim mentis gratissimus error. i 4 o 



346 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Nimirum sapere est abjectis utile nugis, 

Et tempestivum pueris concedere ludum ; 

Ac non verba sequi fidibus modulanda Latinis, 

Sed verae numerosque modosque ediscere vitae. 

Quocirca mecum loquor haec tacitusque recordor : 145 

Si tibi nulla sitim finiret copia lymphae, 

Narrares medicis : quod quanto plura parasti 

Tanto plura cupis, nulline faterier audes ? 

Si vulnus tibi mon strata radice vel herba 

Non fieret levius, fugeres radice vel herba 150 

Proficiente nihil curarier. Audieras, cui 

Rem di donarent illi decedere pravam 

Stultitiam ; et quum sis nihilo sapientior ex quo 

Plenior es, tamen uteris monitoribus isdem ? 

At si divitiae prudentem reddere possent, 155 

Si cupidum timidumque minus te, nempe ruberes 

Viveret in terris te si quis avarior uno. 

Si proprium est quod quis libra mercatur et aere, 

Quaedam, si credis consultis, mancipat usus ; 

Qui te pascit ager tuus est, et villicus Orbi, 160 

Quum segetes occat tibi mox frumenta daturas, 

Te dominum sentit. Das nummos, accipis uvam, 

Pullos, ova, cadum temeti : nempe modo isto 

Paulatim mercaris agrum fortasse trecentis 

Aut etiam supra nummorum millibus emptum. 165 

Quid refert vivas numerato nuper an olim ? 

Emptor Aricini quondam Veientis et arvi 

Emptum coenat olus, quamvis aliter putat ; empfrs 

Sub noctem gelidam lignis calefactat aenum ; 

Sed vocat usque suum qua populus adsita certis 170 

Limitibus vicina refugit jurgia : tamquam 

Sit proprium quidquam, puncto quod mobilis home 

Nunc prece, nunc pretio, nunc vi, nunc morte suprema 

Permutet dominos et cedat in altera jura. 

Sic quia perpetuus nulli datur usus, et heres 175 

Heredem alterius velut unda supervenit undam, 



EPISTOLARUM LIB. II. EPIST. II. 347 

Quid vici prosunt aut horrea ? quidve Calabris 

Saltibus adjecti Lucani, si metit Orcus 

Grandia cum parvis, non exorabilis auro ? 

Gemmas, marmor, ebur, Tyrrhena sigilla, tabellas, 180 

Argentum, vestes Gaetulo murice tinctas, 

Sunt qui non habeant, est qui non curat habere. 

Cur alter fratrum cessare et ludere et ungi 

Praeferat Herodis palmetis pinguibus, alter 

Dives et importunus ad umbram lucis ab ortu is 5 

Silvestrem flammis et ferro mitiget agrum, 

Scit Genius, natale comes qui temperat astrum, 

Naturae deus humanae, mortalis in unum 

Quodque caput, vultu mutabilis, albus et ater. 

Utar et ex modico quantum res poscet acervo i 9 o 

Tollam, nee metuam quid de me judicet heres, 

Quod non plura datis invenerit ; et tamen idem 

Scire volam quantum simplex hilarisque nepoti 

Discrepet et quantum discordet parcus avaro. 

Distat enim spargas tua prodigus an neque sumptum 195 

Invitus facias neque plura parare labores, 

Ac potius, puer ut festis Quinquatribus olim, 

Exiguo gratoque fruaris tempore raptim. 

Pauperies immunda domus procul absit : ego, utrum 

Nave ferar magna an parva, ferar unus et idem. 200 

Non agimur tumidis velis aquilone secundo ; 

Non tamen adversis aetatem ducimus austris, 

Viribus, ingenio, specie, virtute, loco, re, 

Extremi primorum, extremis usque priores. 

Non es avarus : abi ; quid, cetera jam simul isto 205 

Cum vitio fugere ? Caret tibi pectus inani 

Ambitione ? Caret mortis formidine et ira ? 

Somnia, terrores magicos, miracula, sagas, 

Nocturnos lemures portentaque Thessala rides ? 

Natales grate numeras ? Ignoscis amicis ? 210 

Lenior et melior fis accedente senecta? 



348 Q. HORATII FLACCI EPIST. LIB. II. EP. II. 

Quid te exempta levat spinis de pluribus una ? 
Vivere si recte nescis decede peritis. 
Lusisti satis, edisti satis atque bibisti ; 
Tempus abire tibi est, ne potum largius aequo 
Rideat et pulset lasciva decentius aetas. 



Q. HORATII FLACCI 

DE ARTE POETICA 

LIBER. 



Humano capiti cervicem pictor equinam 
Jungere si velit, et varias inducere plumas 
Undique collatis membris, ut turpiter atrum 
Desinat in piscem mulier formosa superne, 
Spectatum admissi risum teneatis, amici ? 
Credite, Pisones, isti tabulae fore librum 
Persimilem cujus, velut aegri somnia, vanae 
Fingentur species, ut nee pes nee caput uni 
Reddatur formae. — Pictoribus atque poetis 
Quidlibet audendi semper fuit aequa potestas. — 
Scimus et hanc veniam petimusque damusque vicissim ; 
Sed non ut placidis coeant immitia, non ut 
Serpentes avibus geminentur, tigribus agni. 
Inceptis gravibus plerumque et magna professis 
Purpureus, late qui splendeat, unus et alter 
Assuitur pannus, quum lucus et ara Dianae 
Et properantis aquae per amoenos ambitus agros, 
Aut flumen Rhenum aut pluvius describitur arcus : 
Sed nunc non erat his locus. Et fortasse cupressum 
Scis simulare ; quid hoc, si fractis enatat exspes 
Navibus aere dato qui pingitur ? Amphora coepit 
Institui : currente rota cur urceus exit ? 
Denique sit quidvis simplex dumtaxat et unum. 
Maxima pars vatum, pater et juvenes patre digni, 
Decipimur specie recti. Brevis esse laboro, 



35© Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Obscurus fio ; sectantem levia nervi 

Deficiunt animique ; professus grandia turget ; 

Serpit humi tutus nimium timidusque procellae ; 

Qui variare cupit rem prodigialiter unam, 

Delphinum silvis appingit, fluctibus aprum. 30 

In vitium ducit culpae fuga si caret arte. 

Aemilium circa ludum faber unus et ungues 

Exprimet et molles imitabitur aere capillos, 

Infelix operis summa quia ponere totum 

Nesciet. Hunc ego me, si quid componere curem, 35 

Non magis esse velim quam naso vivere pravo, 

Spectandum nigris oculis nigroque capillo. 

Sumite materiam vestris qui scribitis aequam 

Viribus et versate diu quid ferre recusent, 

Quid valeant humeri. Cui lecta potenter erit res, 40 

Nee facundia deseret hunc nee lucidus ordo. 

Ordinis haec virtus erit et venus, aut ego fallor, 

Ut jam nunc dicat jam nunc debentia dici, 

Pleraque differat et praesens in tempus omittat ; 

Hoc amet, hoc spernat promissi carminis auctor. 45 

In verbis etiam tenuis cautusque serendis, 

Dixeris egregie notum si callida verbum 

Reddiderit junctura novum. Si forte necesse est 

Indiciis monstrare recentibus abdita rerum, 

Fingere cinctutis non exaudita Cethegis 50 

Continget, dabiturque licentia sumpta pudenter ; 

Et nova fictaque nuper habebunt verba fidem si 

Graeco fonte cadant, parce detorta. Quid autem 

Caecilio Plautoque dabit Romanus ademptum 

Virgilio Varioque ? Ego cur acquirere pauca 55 

Si possum invideor, quum lingua Catonis et Enni 

Sermon em patrium ditaverit et nova rerum 

Nomina protulerit ? Licuit, semperque licebit 

Signatum praesente nota producere nomen. 

Ut silvae foliis pronos mutantur in annos, 60 

Prima cadunt ; ita verborum vetus interit aetas, 



ARS POETICA. 351 

Et juvenum ritu florent modo nata vigentque. 

Debemur morti nos nostraque : sive receptus 

Terra Neptunus classes aquilonibus arcet, 

Regis opus, sterilisve diu palus aptaque remis 65 

Vicinas urbes alit et grave sentit aratrum, 

Seu cursum mutavit iniquum frugibus amnis 

Doctus iter melius, mortalia facta peribunt, 

Nedum sermonum stet honos et gratia vivax. 

Multa renascentur quae jam cecidere, cadentque 7° 

Quae nunc sunt in honore vocabula, si volet usus, 

Quern penes arbitrium est et jus et norma loquendi. 

Res gestae regumque ducumque et tristia bella 

Quo scribi possent numero monstravit Homerus. 

Versibus impariter junctis querimonia primum, 75 

Post etiam inclusa est voti sententia compos ; 

Quis tamen exiguos elegos emiserit auctor, 

Grammatici certant et adhuc sub judice lis est. 

Archilochum proprio rabies armavit iambo ; 

Hunc socci cepere pedem grandesque cothurni, 80 

Alternis aptum sermonibus et populares 

Vincentem strepitus et natum rebus agendis. 

Musa dedit fidibus divos puerosque deorum 

Et pugilem victorem et equum certamine primum 

Et juvenum curas et libera vina referre. 85 

Descriptas servare vices operumque colores 

Cur ego si nequeo ignoroque poeta salutor ? 

Cur nescire pudens prave quam discere malo ? 

Versibus exponi tragicis res comica non vult ; 

Indignatur item privatis ac prope socco 90 

Dignis carminibus narrari coena Thyestae. 

Singula quaeque locum teneant sortita decenter. 

Interdum tamen et vocem comoedia tollit, 

Iratusque Chremes tumido delitigat ore ; 

Et tragicus plerumque dolet sermone pedestri 95 

Telephus et Peleus, quum pauper et exsul uterque 

Projicit ampullas et sesquipedalia verba, 



35 2 Q- HORATII FLACCI 

Si curat cor spectantis tetigisse querela. 

Noli satis est pulchra esse poemata ; dulcia sunt 

Et quocumque volent animum auditoris agunto. 100 

Ut ridentibus arrident, ita flentibus adsunt 

Humani vultus : si vis me flere dolendum est 

Primum ipsi tibi ; tunc tua me infortunia laedent, 

Telephe vel Peleu : male si mandata loqueris 

Aut dormitabo aut ridebo. Tristia maestum 105 

Vultum verba decent, iratum plena minarum, 

Ludentem lasciva, severum seria dictu. 

Format enim natura prius nos intus ad omnem 

Fortunarum habitum ; juvat aut impellit ad iram, 

Aut ad humum maerore gravi deducit et angit ; no 

Post effert animi motus interprete lingua. 

Si dicentis erunt fortunis absona dicta 

Romani tollent equites peditesque cachinnum. 

Intererit multum divusne loquatur an heros, 

Maturusne senex an adhuc florente juventa 115 

Fervidus, et matrona potens an sedula nutrix, 

Mercatorne vagus cultorne virentis agelli, 

Colchus an Assyrius, Thebis nutritus an Argis. 

Aut famam sequere aut sibi convenientia finge. 

Scriptor honoratum si forte reponis Achillem, 120 

Impiger, iracundus, inexorabilis, acer, 

Jura neget sibi nata, nihil non arroget armis. 

Sit Medea ferox invictaque, flebilis Ino, 

Perfidus Ixion, Io vaga, tristis Orestes. 

Si quid inexpertum scenae committis et audes 125 

Personam formare novam, servetur ad imum 

Qualis ab incepto processerit, et sibi constet. 

Difficile est proprie communia dicere ; tuque 

Rectius Iliacum carmen deducis in actus, 

Quam si proferres ignota indictaque primus. 130 

Publica materies privati juris erit, si 

Non circa vilem patulumque moraberis orbem, 

Nee verbo verbum curabis reddere fidus 



ARS POETICA. 353 

Interpres, nee desilies imitator in arctum 
Unde pedem proferre pudor vetet aut operis lex. 135 

Nee sic incipies, ut scriptor cyclicus olim : 
Fortunam Priami cantabo et nobile bellum. — 
Quid dignum tanto feret hie promissor hiatu ? 
Parturiunt montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. 
Quanto rectius hie, qui nil molitur inepte : i 4 o 

Die mihi, Musa, virum, captae post tempora Trojae 
Qui mores hominum multorum vidit et urbes. — 
Non fumum ex fulgore sed ex fumo dare lucem 
Cogitat, ut speciosa dehinc miracula promat, 
Antiphaten Scyllamque et cum Cyclope Charybdin ; i 45 
Nee reditum Diomedis ab interitu Meleagri, 
Nee gemino bellum Trojanum orditur ab ovo ; 
Semper ad eventum festinat et in medias res 
Non secus ac notas auditorem rapit, et quae 
Desperat tractata nitescere posse relinquit ; 150 

Atque ita mentitur, sic veris falsa remiscet, 
Primo ne medium, medio ne discrepet imum. ' 
Tu quid ego et populus mecum desideret, audi : 
Si plausoris eges aulaea manentis et usque 
Sessuri donee cantor, Vos plaudite ! dicat, 155 

Aetatis cujusque notandi sunt tibi mores, 
Mobilibusque decor naturis dandus et annis. 
Reddere qui voces jam scit puer et pede certo 
Signat humum, gestit paribus colludere, et iram 
Colligit ac ponit temere, et mutatur in horas. 160 

Imberbis juvenis tandem custode remoto 
Gaudet equis canibusque et aprici gramine campi, 
Cereus in vitium flecti, monitoribus asper, 
Utilium tardus provisor, prodigus aeris, 
Sublimis cupidusque et amata relinquere pernix. i6 S 

Conversis studiis aetas animusque virilis 
Quaerit opes et amicitias, inservit honori, 
Commisisse cavet quod mox mutare laboret 
Multa senem circumveniunt incommoda, vel quod 
23 



354 Q- HORATII FLACGI 

Quaerit et inventis miser abstinet ac timet uti, 170 

Vel quod res omnes timide gelideque ministrat, 

Dilator, spe longus, iners, avidusque futuri, 

Difficilis, querulus, laudator temporis acti 

Se puero, castigator censorque minorum. 

Multa ferunt anni venientes commoda secum, i 75 

Multa recedentes adimunt. Ne forte seniles 

Mandentur juveni partes pueroque viriles, 

Semper in adjunctis aevoque morabimur aptis. 

Aut agitur res in scenis aut acta refertur. 

Segnius irritant animos demissa per aurem, 180 

Quam quae sunt oculis subjecta fidelibus, et quae 

Ipse sibi tradit spectator : non tamen intus 

Digna geri promes in scenam, multaque tolles 

Ex oculis quae mox narret facundia praesens. 

Ne pueros coram populo Medea trucidet, 185 

Aut humana palam coquat exta nefarius Atreus, 

Aut in avem Procne vertatur, Cadmus in anguem. 

Quodcumque ostendis mihi sic incredulus odi. 

Neve minor neu sit quinto productior actu 

Fabula, quae posci vult et spectata reponi ; 190 

Nee deus intersit nisi dignus vindice nodus 

Incident ; nee quarta loqui persona laboret. 

Actoris partes chorus officiumque virile 

Defendat, neu quid medios intercinat actus 

Quod non proposito conducat et haereat apte. 19s 

Ille bonis faveatque et consilietur amice, 

Et regat iratos et amet peccare timentes ; 

Ille dapes laudet mensae brevis, ille salubrem 

Justitiam legesque et apertis otia portis ; 

Ille tegat commissa deosque precetur et oret, 200 

Ut redeat miseris, abeat fortuna superbis. 

Tibia non ut nunc orichalco vincta tubaeque 

Aemula, sed tenuis simplexque foramine pauco 

Adspirare et adesse choris erat utilis atque 

Nondum spissa nimis complere sedilia flatu ; 205 



ARS POETICA. 355 

Quo sane populus numerabilis, utpote parvus, 

Et frugi castusque verecundusque coibat. 

Postquam coepit agros extendere victor, et urbes 

Latior amplecti murus, vinoque diurno 

Placari Genius festis impune diebus, 210 

Accessit numerisque modisque licentia major ; 

Indoctus quid enim saperet liberque laborum 

Rusticus urbano confusus, turpis honesto ? 

Sic priscae motumque et luxuriem addidit arti 

Tibicen traxitque vagus per pulpita vestem ; 215 

Sic etiam fidibus voces crevere severis, 

Et tulit eloquium insolitum facundia praeceps, 

Utiliumque sagax rerum et divina ruturi 

Sortilegis non discrepuit sententia Delphis. 

Carmine qui tragico vilem certavit ob hircum, 220 

Mox etiam agrestes Satyros nudavit, et asper 

Incolumi gravitate jocum tentavit, eo quod 

Illecebris erat et grata novitate morandus 

Spectator, functusque sacris et potus et exlex. 

Verum ita risores, ita commendare dicaces 225 

Conveniet Satyros, ita vertere seria ludo, 

Ne quicumque deus, quicumque adhibebitur heros, 

Regali conspectus in auro nuper et ostro, 

Migret in obscuras humili sermone tabernas, 

Aut, dum vitat humum, nubes et inania captet. 230 

Effutire leves indigna Tragoedia versus, 

Ut festis matrona moveri jussa diebus, 

Intererit Satyris paulum pudibunda protervis. 

Non ego inornata et dominantia nomina solum 

Verbaque, Pisones, Satyrorum scriptor amabo ; 235 

Nee sic enitar tragico differre colori 

Ut nihil intersit Davusne loquatur et audax 

Pythias emuncto lucrata Simone talentum, 

An custos famulusque dei Silenus alumni. 

Ex noto fictum carmen sequar, ut sibi quivis 240 

Speret idem, sudet multum frustraque laboret 



356 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Ausus idem : tantum series juncturaque pollet, 

Tantum de medio sumptis accedit honoris. 

Silvis deducti caveant me judice Fauni, 

Ne velut innati triviis ac paene forenses 245 

Aut nimium teneris juvenentur versibus unquam, 

Aut immunda crepent ignominiosaque dicta : 

Offenduntur enim quibus est equus et pater et res, 

Nee, si quid fricti ciceris probat et nucis emptor, 

Aequis accipiunt animis donantve corona. 250 

Syllaba longa brevi subjecta vocatur iambus, 

Pes citus ; unde etiam trimetris accrescere jussit 

Nomen iambeis, quum senos redderet ictus 

Primus ad extremum similis sibi. Non ita pridem, 

Tardior ut paulo graviorque veniret ad aures, 255 

Spondeos stabiles in jura paterna recepit 

Commodus et patiens, non ut de sede secunda 

Cederet aut quarta socialiter. Hie et in Acci 

Nobilibus trimetris apparet rarus, et Enni 

In scenam missos cum magno pondere versus 260 

Aut operae celeris nimium curaque carentis 

Aut ignoratae premit artis crimine turpi. 

Non quivis videt immodulata poemata judex, 

Et data Romanis venia est indigna poetis. 

Idcircone vager scribamque licenter ? an omnes 265 

Visuros peccata putem mea, tutus et intra 

Spem veniae cautus ? Vitavi denique culpam, 

Non laudem merui. Vos exemplaria Graeca 

Nocturna versate manu, versate diurna. 

At vestri proavi Plautinos et numeros et 270 

Laudavere sales : nimium patienter utrumque 

Ne dicam stulte mirati, si modo ego et vos 

Scimus inurbanum lepido seponere dicto 

Legitimumque sonum digitis callemus et aure. 

Ignotum tragicae genus invenisse Camenae 275 

Dicitur et plaustris vexisse poemata Thespis, 

Quae canerent agerentque peruncti faecibus ora. 



I 



ARS POETICA. 357 

Post hunc personae pallaeque repertor honestae 

Aeschylus et modicis instravit pulpita tignis 

Et docuit magnumque loqui nitique cothurno. 280 

Successit vetus his comoedia, non sine multa 

Laude ; sed in vitium libertas excidit et vim 

Dignam lege regi : lex est accepta chorusque 

Turpiter obticuit sublato jure nocendi. 

Nil intentatum nostri liquere poetae, 285 

Nee minimum meruere decus vestigia Graeca 

Ausi deserere et celebrare domestica facta, 

Vel qui praetextas vel qui docuere togatas. 

Nee virtute foret clarisve potentius armis 

Quam lingua Latium, si non offenderet unum 290 

Quemque poetarum limae labor et mora. Vos, o 

Pompilius sanguis, carmen reprehendite quod non 

Multa dies et multa litura coercuit, atque 

Perfectum decies non castigavit ad unguem. 

Ingenium misera quia fortunatius arte 295 

Credit et excludit sanos Helicone poetas 

Democritus, bona pars non ungues ponere curat, 

Non barbam, secreta petit loca, balnea vitat. 

Nanciscetur enim pretium nomenque poetae, 

Si tribus Anticyris caput insanabile nunquam 300 

Tonsori Licino commiserit. O ego laevus, 

Qui purgor bilem sub verni temporis horam ! 

Non alius faceret meliora poemata. Verum 

Nil tanti est. Ergo fungar vice cotis, acutum 

Reddere quae ferrum valet exsors ipsa secandi ; 30s 

Munus et officium nil scribens ipse docebo, 

Unde parentur opes, quid alat formetque poetam ; 

Quid deceat, quid non ; quo virtus, quo ferat error. 

Scribendi recte sapere est et principium et fons : 

Rem tibi Socraticae poterunt ostendere chartae, 310 

Verbaque provisam rem non invita sequentur. 

Qui didicit patriae quid debeat et quid amicis, 

Quo sit amore parens, quo frater amandus et hospes, 



358 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Quod sit conscripti, quod judicis officium, quae 

Partes in bellum missi ducis, ille profecto 315 

Reddere personae scit convenientia cuique. 

Respicere exemplar vitae morumque jubebo 

Doctum imitatorem et vivas hinc ducere voces. 

Interdum speciosa locis morataque recte 

Fabula nullius veneris, sine pondere et arte, 320 

Valdius oblectat populum meliusque moratur 

Quam versus inopes rerum nugaeque canorae. 

Graiis ingenium, Graiis dedit ore rotundo 

Musa loqui, praeter laudem nullius avaris. 

Romani pueri longis rationibus assem 325 

Discunt in partes centum diducere. — Dicat 

Filius Albini : Si de quincunce remota est 

Uncia, quid superat ? Poteras dixisse. — Triens. — Eu ! 

Rem poteris servare tuam. Redit uncia, quid fit ? — 

Semis. — At haec animos aerugo et cura peculi 330 

Quum semel imbuerit, speramus carmina fingi 

Posse linenda cedro et levi servanda cupresso ? 

Aut prodesse volunt aut delectare poetae, 

Aut simul et jucunda et idonea dicere vitae. 

Quidquid praecipies esto brevis, ut cito dicta 33s 

Percipiant animi dociles teneantque fideles : 

Omne supervacuum pleno de pectore manat. 

Ficta voluptatis causa sint proxima veris, 

Nee quodcumque volet poscat sibi fabula credi, 

Neu pransae Lamiae vivum puerum extrahat alvo. 340 

Centuriae seniorum agitant expertia frugis, 

Celsi praetereunt austera poemata Ramnes : 

Omne tulit punctum qui miscuit utile dulci, 

Lectorem delectando pariterque monendo. 

Hie meret aera liber Sosiis ; hie et mare transit 345 

Et longum noto scriptori prorogat aevum. 

Sunt delicta tamen quibus ignovisse velimus : 

Nam neque chorda sonum reddit quern vult manus et mens, 

Poscentique gravem persaepe remittit acutum ; 



ARS POETICA. 359 

Nec semper feriet quodcumque minabitur arcus. 35° 

Verum ubi plura nitent in carmine non ego paucis 

Offendar maculis, quas aut incuria fudit 

Aut humana parum cavit natura. Quid ergo est ? 

Ut scriptor si peccat idem librarius usque 

Quamvis est monitus venia caret, ut citharoedus 355 

Ridetur chorda qui semper oberrat eadem, 

Sic mihi qui multum cessat fit Choerilus ille, 

Quem bis terve bonum cum risu miror ; et idem 

Indignor quandoque bonus dormitat Homerus ; — 

Verum operi longo fas est obrepere somnum. 360 

Ut pictura poesis : erit quae si propius stes 

Te capiat magis, et quaedam si longius abstes : 

Haec amat obscurum, volet haec sub luce videri, 

Judicis argutum quae non formidat acumen ; 

Haec placuit semel, haec decies repetita placebit. 365 

O major juvenum, quamvis et voce paterna 

Fingeris ad rectum et per te sapis, hoc tibi dictum 

Tolle memor, certis medium et tolerabile rebus 

Recte concedi. Consultus juris et actor 

Causarum mediocris abest virtute diserti 370 

Messallae nec scit quantum Cascellius Aulus, 

Sed tamen in pretio est ; mediocribus esse poetis 

Non homines, non di, non concessere columnae. 

Ut gratas inter mensas symphonia discors 

Et crassum unguentum et Sardo cum melle papaver 375 

OfTendunt, poterat duci quia coena sine istis ; 

Sic animis natum inventumque poema juvandis, 

Si paulum summo decessit, vergit ad imum. 

Ludere qui nescit campestribus abstinet armis, 

Indoctusque pilae discive trochive quiescit, 380 

Ne spissae risum tollant impune coronae : 

Qui nescit versus tamen audet fingere. Quidni ? 

Liber et ingenuus, praesertim census equestrem 

Summam nummorum vitioque remotus ab omni. 

Tu nihil invita dices faciesve Minerva ; 385 



360 Q. HORATII FLACCI 

Id tibi judicium est, ea mens. Si quid tamen olim 

Scripseris in Maeci descendat judicis aures 

Et patris et nostras, nonumque prematur in annum, 

Membranis intus positis : delere licebit 

Quod non edideris ; nescit vox missa reverti. 390 

Silvestres homines sacer interpresque deorum 

Caedibus et victu foedo deterruit Orpheus, 

Dictus ob hoc lenire tigres rabidosque leones ; 

Dictus et Amphion, Thebanae conditor arcis, 

Saxa movere sono testudinis et prece blanda 395 

Ducere quo vellet. Fuit haec sapientia quondam, 

Publica privatis secernere, sacra profanis, 

Concubitu probibere vago, dare jura maritis, 

Oppida moliri, leges incidere ligno : 

Sic honor et nomen divinis vatibus atque 400 

Carminibus venit. Post hos insignis Homerus, 

Tyrtaeusque mares animos in Martia bella 

Versibus exacuit ; dictae per carmina sortes, 

Et vitae monstrata via est ; et gratia regum 

Pieriis tentata modis ; ludusque repertus 405 

Et longorum operum finis : ne forte pudori 

Sit tibi Musa lyrae sollers et cantor Apollo. 

Natura fieret laudabile carmen an arte 

Quaesitum est ; ego nee studium sine divite vena 

Nee rude quid posset video ingenium : alterius sic 410 

Altera poscit opem res et con jurat amice. 

Qui studet optatam cursu contingere metam 

Multa tulit fecitque puer, sudavit et alsit, 

Abstinuit venere et vino ; qui Pythia cantat 

Tibicen didicit prius extimuitque magistrum. 415 

Nee satis est dixisse : Ego mira poemata pango ; 

Occupet extremum scabies ; mihi turpe relinqui est 

Et quod non didici sane nescire fateri. — 

Ut praeco, ad merces turbam qui cogit emendas, 

Assentatores jubet ad lucrum ire poeta 420 

Dives agris, dives positis in fenore nummis. 



ARS POETICA. 361 

Si vero est unctum qui recte ponere possit 

Et spondere levi pro paupere et eripere atris 

Litibus implicitum, mirabor si sciet inter- 

Noscere mendacem verumque beatus amicum. 425 

Tu seu donaris seu quid donare voles cui, 

Nolito ad versus tibi factos ducere plenum 

Laetitiae ; clamabit enim, Pulchre ! bene ! recte ! 

Pallescet super his, etiam stillabit amicis 

Ex oculis rorem, saliet, tundet pede terrain. 430 

Ut qui conducti plorant in funere dicunt 

Et faciunt prope plura dolentibus ex animo, sic 

Derisor vero plus laudatore movetur. 

Reges dicuntur multis urgere culullis 

Et torquere mero quern perspexisse laborant, 435 

An sit amicitia dignus : si carmina condes 

Nunquam te fallant animi sub vulpe latentes. 

Quintilio si quid recitares, Corrige sodes 

Hoc, aiebat, et hoc. Melius te posse negares 

Bis terque expertum frustra, delere jubebat 440 

Et male tornatos incudi reddere versus. 

Si defendere delictum quam vertere malles, 

Nullum ultra verbum aut operam insumebat inanem 

Quin sine rivali teque et tua solus amares. 

Vir bonus et prudens versus reprehendet inertes, 445 

Culpabit duros, incomptis adlinet atrum 

Traverso calamo signum, ambitiosa recidet 

Ornamenta, parum claris lucem dare coget, 

Arguet ambigue dictum, mutanda notabit, 

Fiet Aristarchus ; non dicet : Cur ego amicum 450 

Offendam in nugis ? — Hae nugae seria ducent 

In mala derisum semel exceptumque sinistre. 

Ut mala quem scabies aut morbus regius urget 

Aut fanaticus error et iracunda Diana, 

Vesanum tetigisse timent fugiuntque poetam 455 

Qui sapiunt ; agitant pueri incautique sequuntur. 

Hie, dum sublimis versus ructatur et errat, 



362 Q. HORATII FLACCI ARS POETICA. 

Si veluti merulis intentus decidit auceps 

In puteum foveamve, licet, Succurrite, longum 

Clamet, Io cives ! non sit qui tollere curet. 460 

Si curet quis opem ferre et demittere fun em, 

Qui scis an prudens hue se projecerit atque 

Servari nolit ? dicam, Siculique poetae 

Narrabo interitum. Deus immortalis haberi 

Dum cupit Empedocles, ardentem frigidus Aetnam 465 

Insiluit. Sit jus liceatque perire poetis : 

Invitum qui servat idem facit occidenti. 

Nee semel hoc fecit, nee si retractus erit jam 

Fiet homo et ponet famosae mortis amorem. 

Nee satis apparet cur versus factitet, utrum 470 

Minxerit in patrios cineres, an triste bidental 

Moverit incestus : certe furit ac velut ursus 

Objectos caveae valuit si frangere clathros, 

Indoctum doctumque fugat recitator acerbus; 

Quern vero arripuit tenet occiditque legendo, 475 

Non missura cutem nisi plena cruoris hirudo. 



NOTES 



LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS. 



A., Aeneid. 

A. P., Ars Poetica. 

A. & S., Andrews and Stoddard's Latin 

Grammar. 
C. (Carmina), Odes. 
Cf. {confer), compare. 
Con., Conington. 
C. S., Carmen Seculare. 
Dillenb., Dillenburger. 
Dod., Dbderlein. 
E., Eclogue, Epistles. 
Eleg., Elegy. 
Ep., Epodes. 
Ex., Exception, 
foil., following. 
Forb., Forbiger. 
G., Georgics. 
Gr., Harkness's Latin Grammar. 



Horn., Homer. 

Hor., Horace. 

II., Iliad. 

lit., literal, literally. 

M., Metamorphoses. 

N., Note. 

Od., Odyssey. 

Ov., Ovid. 

R., Remark. 

S., Satires. 

Sc. (scilicet), supply. 

Sp., Spohn. 

Trist., Tristia. 

v., w., verse, verses. 

Virg, Virgil. 

Wr., Wagner. 

Wch., Wunderlich. 

Z., Zumpt's Latin Grammar. 



Abbreviations of grammatical terms, as gen., dat., sing., pres , infin., etc., and 
many of a miscellaneous character, as B. C, A. U. C, MSS., etc., need no explana- 
tion. 



. 



I 



THE LIFE OF OVID. 



In the Tenth Elegy of the Fourth Book of his Tristia, our poet has 
himself given us a minute account of his life and fortunes. In other 
poems, he often speaks of himself, so that there are few writers of 
ancient times with whose history we are better acquainted. Several 
biographies of him have come down to us ; but they add little of im- 
portance to what we thus learn from his own writings. 

Publius Ovidius Naso was born of an ancient and noble family, 
at Sulmo (now Sulmona), in the country of the Peligni, March 20, 
b. c. 43. At an early age, he was sent to Rome to be educated, and 
studied with some of the most eminent teachers of the day, among 
whom he mentions Arellius Fuscus and Porcius Latro. He was de- 
signed by his father for the bar, and seems to have made commend- 
able proficiency in the preliminary studies of the profession. The 
elder Seneca speaks highly of his declamations, and has preserved an 
extract from one of them. He remarks, however, that Ovid's oratory 
resembled a solittum carmen, and Ovid himself tells us that whatever 
he attempted to write took the form of verse sponte sua. His father 
endeavored to wean him from this tendency to poetical pursuits, warn- 
ing him that poetry was the direct road to. poverty ; but, after a brief 
struggle against the ruling passion, he yielded to his destiny, aban- 
doned the profession for which he was intended, and devoted himself 
to the service of the Muses. He mentions several of the leading 
poets of the day as among the number of his friends at this time ; 
Macer, Propertius, Bassus, and Horace. Virgil and Tibullus, both 
of whom died when he was but twenty-four, he knew less intimately. 
He seems to have been most familiar with Propertius, who, like him- 
self, had relinquished forensic for poetical pursuits, and who occa- 
sionally read to him his elegies, which naturally excited the admira- 
tion and the emulation of the youthful listener. Ovid, like Proper- 
tius, had attempted epic poetry ; but the failure of his friend in this 
species of writing, and his brilliant success in elegy, appear to have 
determined his own hesitating muse. His first published work, the 
Amores, was the result, and the favor with which it was received en- 
couraged him to persevere in the career on which he had entered. 



366 THE LIFE OF OVID. 

The life of Ovid, like that of most literary men, exhibits few prom- 
inent incidents. From himself we learn that he was thrice married. 
His first marriage took place when he was very young, and was soon 
dissolved as a low and unworthy connection. His second wife was 
also divorced, though he makes no charge against her. The third, to 
whom he seems to have been tenderly attached, remained with him 
until his banishment, in which she was forbidden by Augustus to ac- 
company him. He studied at Athens, as was customary with the 
young men of his time. He held the judicial offices of triumvir, of 
centumvir, and of decemvir. Till his fiftieth year, he continued to 
reside at Rome, where he had a house near the Capitol. He not 
only enjoyed the friendship of a large circle of distinguished men, 
but was honored with the favor of Augustus and the imperial family. 

Meanwhile he had given to the world the second edition of the 
Amores ; the Heroides, in which the most tragic love-stories of an- 
cient legend are versified under the form of epistles ; a tragedy, Medea, 
only two lines of which have come down to us, but which was esteemed 
by contemporary critics as his masterpiece ; the Ars Amatoria, or De 
Arte Amandi ; the Remedia Amoris ; and some minor poems. He 
had been engaged for some ten years on his great work, the Meta- 
morphoses, which was nearly ready for publication. He had collected 
the materials for the Fasti, a poetical version of the pontifical ritual, 
and may have made some progress in the composition of that work. 
While thus engaged, he was suddenly commanded by an imperial 
edict to transport himself to Tomi, a town on the Euxine, near the 
mouth of the Danube, on the very frontiers of the empire. A few 
hours only were allowed him to prepare for the journey which was to 
remove him forever from his home, his friends, and his family. He 
was exiled, unheard and unarraigned, and the cause of his banish- 
ment was only vaguely indicated by a complaint against the perni- 
cious tendency of the Ars Amatoria, which had been published ten 
years previous. Had he been exiled at the time of its publication, it 
might not have seemed extraordinary, since the poem tended directly 
to subvert all those measures for the regulation of public morals 
which Augustus was taking singular pains to enforce ; but Ovid was* 
never molested on the ground of the licentiousness of his writings 
until an event occurred, which is now hidden in impenetrable mys- 
tery, although it is evident that it was no secret at the time. This 
event was the real ground of the banishment, for which the poem was 
made the pretext. 

It is much easier to show what the offence was not than what it 
was. " It seems to have been of a nature which Augustus could not 
venture to declare openly : had it been an offence against public mo- 
rality, he would have claimed merit for making it the subject of a 



THE LIFE OF OVID. $67 

public arraignment. Though the sufferer bows to his sentence, and 
acquiesces discreetly in the charge which he knows to be fictitious, 
his allusions point plainly to some other cause, well known to Augus- 
tus and himself, the possession apparently, and possibly, as he pro- 
tests, the innocent possession of some fatal secret. The conjectures 
which have been made regarding it may be readily dismissed as 

groundless It seems natural to surmise that Ovid, though no 

public man himself, got unwittingly implicated in the political in- 
trigues of the time, and suffered as an accomplice in projects, of the 
scope of which he was perhaps actually unconscious."* 

After a night of inexpressible distress, which the poet could never 
recall without tears, a night spent in taking leave of his wife and of 
two friends who remained with him to the last, (his daughter was in 
Africa,) by early morning he was afloat on a tempestuous sea, the 
gloomy image of his future life on the Getic coast. It was nearly a 
year before he reached Tomi ; but he beguiled the time by writing, 
several of his pieces having been written on shipboard. 

" From the scene of his punishment, on the verge of the inhospi- 
table Dobrudscha, dreary and pestilential now, but then alternating 
the frosts of the Neva with the fevers of the Niger, the wretched vic- 
tim poured forth his misery in verses of grace and sweetness, though 
of little power : he murmured at the loss of every friend and amuse- 
ment, at the rudeness of the people, and hostility of their savage 
neighbors, while he shuddered at the sight of the frozen Euxine, or 
shivered in the agues of the Danubian marshes. A gleam of reviving 
cheerfulness induced him at more favorable moments to cultivate the 
hospitality of the natives, and to flatter them by cultivating their lan- 
guage, and even writing verses in it ; but neither lamentations nor 
industry availed to soothe the bitterness of his sorrows, which were 
only for a moment allayed by anticipations of future celebrity ; and he 
continued in vain to solicit with abject humiliation the compassion of 
the offended emperor. Though his punishment was not strictly 
exile (exilium), but only the milder form of relegation {relegatio), which 
allowed him to retain his fortune and his citizenship, and admitted 
the hope of eventual pardon, he never obtained remission of his sen- 
tence, though he survived Augustus three years."! 

Ovid died, a. d. 18, in the sixtieth year of his age, and the tenth of 
his exile. His constitution, never robust, gradually gave way under 
the burden of his sorrows. The severity of the climate, the want of 
home comforts and of good medical advice, doubtless hastened his 
decline ; but it is probable that this last chapter of the sad story is 
briefly comprehended in the simple words of one of his biographers : 
" he died of a broken heart." 

* Merivale, History of the Romans under the Empire, Vol. IV. p. 260. 
f Merivale, loc. cit. 



368 THE LIFE OF OVID. 

The works of Ovid up to the time of his exile have already been 
enumerated. To these are to be added the five books of elegies 
called Tristia, written during the first four years of his banishment, 
and the four books of Epistolae ex Ponto, written subsequently, in the 
same measure as the Tristia, and, like that work, made up of descrip- 
tions of his afflicted condition and petitions for mercy. There is also 
a satirical poem called Ibis, written in exile, and several other pieces, 
whose genuineness is more or less doubtful. Of the twelve books of 
the Fasti, only six have come down to us, and some have thought 
that only six were ever written. The Metamorphoses, which the poet 
burnt on going into exile, was complete in its plan, though it had not 
received its last touches, and copies of it were already in the hands 
of friends, through whom it was preserved. 

" If Ovid, as a man, was unfortunate, as a poet he cannot be alto- 
gether so regarded. He was born at the happiest time for the exhi- 
bition of his chief excellence, skill in the mechanical structure of his 
language. Even in the Julian Age he would scarcely have developed 
this, nor, if he had, would it have been duly appreciated ; and imme- 
diately after his decease a new school had arisen. Of the mutual 
adaptation of his time and his genius he was fully sensible ; and he 
made good use of his opportunities. When we speak, however, of 
Ovid's elegance as his principal distinction, it is only because his suc- 
cess in this respect is so transcendent. He was, in imaginative power, 
perhaps, superior to all other Latin poets ; and Milton hesitates not 
to affirm, that, but for the influence of misfortune on his genius, he 
would have surpassed Virgil in epic achievement. The Metamor- 
phoses, though in part indebted to Greek originals for form and mate- 
rial, are yet a marvellous work of fancy. Some of the stories are 
exuberant with creative force ; and the subtle thread which connects 
the diverse materials in one harmonious and beautiful whole is not 
less admirable than the structure itself. .... Ovid was the only 
writer of eminence who prolonged the golden age of Latin poetry be- 
yond the time of Horace." * 

" His various compositions," says another writer, from whom we 
have already quoted, " comprehend many pieces of unsullied purity 
and grace, which are still the first pages of antiquity we put into the 
hands of our children, and among the last on which we turn the retro- 
spect of our own declining years His amatory poems were 

principally the work of his earlier years, and the maturity of his powers 
was devoted sedulously, nor with less felicity, to subjects of wider 
scope and higher interest." t 

* Thompson, History of Roman Literature. 
t Merivale. 



NOTES 



ON THE 



SELECTIONS FROM OVID. 



METAMORPHOSES. Book I. 

THE FOUR AGES. [w. 89-162.] In regard to the number 
of these Ages, the poets do not agree. Hesiod reckons five, adding 
the heroic after the brazen ; Ovid, four ; Aratus, three ; Virgil (G. I. 
125 foil.) and Tibullus mention two. There was also a prophecy 
that, after the present age is ended, these ages are to repeat them- 
selves in inverse order. See Virg. E. IV. 

89 Prima — est = first began. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (b). 
Vindice nuilo = with no magistrate to punish crime. Gr. 431. 
A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). — 90. Sponte. Gr. 134. A. & S. 94. Rec- 
tum. Gr. 441. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (2). Colebat. Gr. 469. II. 
A. & S. 145, II. 1. — 92. Aere = brazen tablets; on which, in early 
times, the laws were set up for public view. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 622. 
Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. Supplex turba = the accused 
and their friends. — 93. Erant. Gr. 461. 1. A. & S. 209, R. n & 
(2). Tuti. Gr. 438. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 3. — 94. Suis = its na- 
tive. Peregrinum .... orbem = foreign lands. Viseret. 
Gr. 481. II. 1 ; 491. A. & S. 258. I. 2; 262.-95. Pinus. Gr. 
705. III. A. & S. 324. 3. Undas. Gr. 435. 1. A. & S. 235 (2). On 
vv. 94, 95, cf. Virg. E. IV. 32-38. — 96. Norant. Gr. 234. 2; 
297. 2. A. & S. 162. 7 {a) ; 183, N. 3. — 97. As yet there were no 
wars. Praecipites = deep. — 98. The tuba was straight, and 
used by infantry ; the cornu, curved, used by cavalry. Aeris. Gr. 
396. IV. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 99. Erat Gr. 463 I. A. & S. 209, 
R. 12 (3). Sine — usu = without need of soldiery. — 101. Cf. 
Virg. G. I. 94. Immunis is, literally, free from taxes ; here = 
nullo cogeute, v. 103. Rastro. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 102. 
Per se = spontaneously. Omnia. Gr. 441. A. & S. 205, R. 7 
(2). — 103. Contenti; sc. homines. Cibis. Gr. 419. IV. A. & 
S. 244. Nullo. Gr. 431 ; 457. 2. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a) ; 207, R. 31 (r). 
— 104. Arbuteos foetus = the fruit of the strawberry-tree (Arbu- 
24 



370 NOTES ON OVID. 

tus unedo), which grows wild in Italy. Montana fraga = common 
strawberries, which are abundant on wooded hills. — 105. Corna 
= the fruit of the wild cornel-tree. Homer mentions it as the food 
of swine. Cf. Virg. A. III. 649. Mora = blackberries, the fruit of the 
rubeta. Rubetis. Gr. 435. 1. A. & 8.235(2). — 106, Arbore = 
the oak, sacred to Jupiter, as the laurel to Apollo, the poplar to Her- 
cules, the olive to Minerva, etc. Gr. 425. A. & S. 242. — 107. Ait- 
ris. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 108. Sine semine = without 
cultivation. — 109. Fruges. Gr. 133. 2. A. & S. 94. So mella, v. 
112. — 110. Nee renovatus ager = et ager non renovatus ; i. e. 
without having been renewed by lying fallow. — 112. Cf. Virg. E. 
IV. 30. Viridi = evergreen. — 113. Saturno Gr. 431. A. & S. 
257. Saturn, the father of Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto, was driven 
from his kingdom by his sons, and banished to Tartarus. The golden 
age was during his reign. Hence Virgil (G. II. 538) calls him aureus 
Saturnus. — 114. Subiit. The last syllable is lengthened by the 
arsis. Gr. 660. A. & S. 308 (2). —115. Auro. Gr. 417. A. & S. 
256, R. 1. Deterior = worse, with reference to good; fejor, with 
reference to bad. Gr. 166. A. & S. 126. I. Auro and aere for aurea 
and aenea (sc. prole, or aetate). — 116, Contraxit. Gr. 248. 1. 
A. & S. 171. 1. — 117. A spondaic line. Gr. 672. 3. A. & S. 310. I. 1. 
Inaequales = changeable. Cf. incertis ; Virg. G.I. 115. — 118. 
Spatiis. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. Exegit = completed. 
Some critics make it = measured, or divided. — 119. Fervoribus. 
Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. So ventis, v. 120. — 120. Adstricta, or 
astricta = congealed. Adstringere is used with reference to the cold 
of Winter, as solvere (Cf. Hor. C. I. 4. 1) to the warmth of Spring. 
Fependit, from pendere. — 121. Domos. Gr. 117. 1 ; 371. 4. 1). 
A. & S. 89 ; 233 (3) and N. — 123. Cerealia. Ceres, the daugh- 
ter of Saturn and Vesta, first taught men the arts of agriculture and 
bread-making. See Met. V. 343 foil, and Virg. G. I. 147. Semina 
Cerealia = corn. Cf. Virg. A. I. 177. Sulcis. Gr. 422. 1. 2). 
A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 125. The Brazen Age is described very briefly. 
The poet may have intended to amplify and complete the passage, in 
the final revision of the work, which he never made. See Life. — 
126. Ingeniis. Gr. 429. A. &S. 250. 1. Horrida = saeva. Some 
explain it as = horrentia, bristling. — 127. Ultima. Gr. 166. A. & 
S. 126. 1. — 129. Verum. An adjective used as an abstract noun. 
Gr. 441. — 131. Insidiae. Gr. 131. 1. 4). A. & S. 96. Amor 
habendi = love of gain, or covetousness. Cf. Virg. A. III. 56 : 
auri sacra fames. Gr. 563. A. & S. 275. III. R. 1. — 132. Ventis. 
Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 223. — 133. Steterant = had stood ; i. e. as 
trees. — 134. Fluctibus. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Insultavere 
= bounded over ; i. e. contemptuously. Cf. Hor. C. I. 3. 24. Tibul- 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK I. 37 1 

lus (I. 3. 37) uses contemner e in the same way : Nondum caeruleas 
pinus contemserat undas, Carinae. Gr. 705. III. A. & S. 324. 3. 
— 135. Lumina . . . aurae ; sc. sunt (communia). — 137, Segetes. 
Gr. 374. 1. A. & S. 234. I. Debita = clue ; i. e. which men have a 
right to expect as a return for their labor. — 138. Itum est. Gr. 
301. 3. A. & S. 184. 2. — 139. Recondiderat ; sc. ilia = terra. 
Stygiis = Stygian ; i. e. infernal. The Styx, one of the rivers of 
the lower world, is often put for the lower world itself. — 140. Irri- 
tamenta. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204 and R. 3. — 141. Ferro. Gr. 
417. A. &. S. 256, R. 1. —142. Prodierat. Gr. 295. 3 ; 338. 
1. A. & S. 182, R. 3 ; 196, I. 13. Utroque = auro et ferro ; 
i. e. nummis et armis. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 144. Vivi- 
tur. See on itum est, v. 138. Ex rapto = by rapine. Gr. 
580. A. & S. 162. 22 ; 247, R. 3. — 145. Quoque. Gr. 602, 
III. A. & S. 279. 3 (d).— 146. Exitio. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. 
Vir = maritus. — 147. Aconita ; a poisonous plant, found in 
Pontus and sometimes in Italy. It is called lurida from its effect on 
the color of its victims. Cf. Virg. G. II. 128. — 148. He consults 
the astrologers to find out how soon his father will die. Patrios. 
Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 211, R. 4 {a). On ante die?n cf. Virg. A. IV. 697. 
150. Ultima. See on v. 127. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (b). 
Coelestum. Gr. 158. 3. A. & S. 114, Ex. 3. Astraea; the god- 
dess of justice, who was driven from the earth by the impiety of the 
iron age, and became the constellation Virgo in the zodiac. Cf. on 
Virg. E. IV. 6. —151. Foret. Gr. 297. III. 2; 311. 5 ; 489. 
A. & S. 154, R. 3 ; 198. 8 ; 262, R. 5. Terris. See on auro, v. 115. 
— 152. Affectasse. Gr. 234; 551. I. A. & S. 162. 7. {a); 272. 
Ferunt. Gr. 367. 2. 2). A. & S. 209, R. 2. (2). Gigantas. Gr. 98. 
A. &. S. 85. Ex. 2. The Giants were the sons of Earth, who, at the 
instigation of their mother, attacked the Gods in their own abode, to 
avenge the overthrow of the Titans. — 153. Congestos. Gr. 579. 
A. & S. 274. 3. {b). — 155. Fulmine. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. Ossae. 
Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. Olympus, Ossa, and Pelion are moun- 
tains of Thessaly. Cf. on Virg. G. I. 281, 282. —156. Sua mole ; 
i. e. the mountains which they themselves had heaped up. Jacerent. 
Gr. 518. II. A. & S. 263, R. 2. — 158. Animasse. See on affec- 
tasse, v. 152. — 159. Ne — manerent = lest no remnant of that 
race of hers should survive. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262, R. 5. —160. 
Sed et ilia propago = But that race also. — 161. Superum. 
Gr. 45. 5. 4) ; 441. 3. A. & S. 53; 205, R. 7. —162. Scires — 
natos = Sares eos (referring to propago) e sanguine natos esse. Gr. 
486. 4 ; 551. I. A. & S. 260, R. 2 ; 272. 

THE TRANSFORMATION OF LYCAON. [vv. 163-243.] 
This fable is introduced in illustration of the impious and blood- 



372 NOTES ON OVID. 

thirsty character of the race sprung from the blood of the Giants. — 
163. Pater Saturnius= Jupiter, the son of Saturn. See on v. 
113. Arce; sc. coeli. — 164. Facto . . . recenti = since the deed 
was recent. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. R. 7 {a). The order of translation 
is, Et referens (= calling to mind) foeda convivia Lycaoniae (Gr. 398. 
2. A. & S. 211, R. 4) mensae nondimi vulgata, facto recenti, concipit 
animo iras ingentes et dignas Jove, etc. Gr. 419. IV. A. & S. 244. — 
167. Tenuit = retinuit. — 169. Lactea; used as a noun in ap- 
position with nomen. For its gender, see Gr. 35. III. 2. A. & S. 
34. 3 & 4 ; for the construction, Gr. 363. A. & S. 204, R. 8 
(<:), where a similar expression is explained. Candore. Gr. 414. 
2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 170. Hac; sc. via. Superis. See second ref. 
on v. 161. On the case, Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Tonantis = the 
Thunderer ; i. e. Jupiter. — 171. Dextra laevaque ; sc. mami. — 
172. Celebrantur = are thronged ; as the vestibules of the houses 
of the Roman patricians by the crowds of their clients. The dii no- 
biles here are the higher of the two classes of Roman gods, the dii 
majorum gentium and the dii minorum gentiicm. The latter are the 
plebs of v. 173. — 173. Locis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. So loco, v. 
178. A fronte = in the front. — 174. Penates = domos ; literally, 
household gods. — 175. Detur. Gr. 503. III. A. & S. 261. 2. —176. 
Timeam. Gr. 486. 1. A. & S. 260, R. 4. Bixisse. Gr. 542. 2. 
A. & S. 268, R. 2. Palatia ; the palace of Augustus on the Palatine 
hill.— 177. Recessu. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3.— 178. 
Ipse = Jupiter. Sceptro. Gr. 419. II. A. & S. 245. II. 1. — 180. 
Cum. Gr. 187. 2. 'A. & S. 241, R. 1. 182. Magis anxius; sc. 
quam nunc. — 183. Tempestate. Gr. 426. A. & S. 253. The 
order of translation is, qua quisque anguipedum parabat injicere cen- 
tum brachia captivo coelo. Captivo is used " by anticipation," and = 
which they hoped to seize. For the case of coelo see Gr. 386. A. & S. 
224. — 185. Erat. Gr. 516. I. A. & S. 263. 2 (4).— 186. Cor- 
pore; a collective noun; as, in English, a body of men. — 187. Mi- 
ni. Gr. 388. I. A. & S. 225. III. Nereus ; a sea-god, here put for 
the sea itself. He was the son of Oceanus and Terra, and had fifty 
daughters called Nereides. Orbem. Gr. 371. 4. 2). A. & S. 233. — 
188. Perdendum est. Gr. 229. A. & S. 162. 15. So reddendum 
est, v. 191. Flumina infera = the Styx. See on v. 139 and cf. 
Virg. A. VI. 323,324. — 189. Luco. See on recessu, v. 177. — 190. 
Tentata. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272 and 270, R. 3.— 191. Ense. 
Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. Trahatur = should be infected. Gr. 
491. A. & S. 262, R. 5.— 192. Mihi. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Semi- 
dei = literally, half-gods ; " heroes," intermediate between gods and 
men. Nymphae ; female deities of low rank and of several classes, 
the Nereids (see on v. 187), the Naiads, Dryads, Oreads, etc. — 193. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK I. 373 

Faunique Satyrique = Fauns and Satyrs, rural deities, having the 
ears, legs, and feet of goats, and the rest of the body human. Sil- 
van! Silvanus (from silva) was the god of the woods. The name 
is here plural, instead of the usual singular form. The last syllable 
of Faunique is lengthened by the arsis. See on v. 114. The line is 
spondaic. See on v. 117. — 194. Dignamur honore. Gr. 520; 
419. V. 2. A. & S. 244, R. 1.— 195. Sinamus. Gr. 486. III.; 
551. II. 1. A. & S. 260. II. ; 273. 4.— 196. Fore. Gr. 297. III. ; 
551. I. A. & S. 154, R. 3 ; 272, and R. 6. — 197. Mihi. Gr. 384. 
II. A. & S. 223. —198. Struxerit. Gr. 517. I. A. & S. 263. 5. 
Feritate. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 199. Ausum = him who had 
dared. Gr. 221. 2; 272. 3. A. & S. 142. 2; 162. 17. — 200. De- 
poscunt; sc. ad supplicium. Gr. 254. 5. A. & S. 163, E. 1. Sae- 
vit = saeviit = saevivit. Gr. 234. 1. A. & S. 162. 7 {d). Somo//it,v. 
229. — 201. Sanguine Caesareo. Some commentators refer this to 
the assassination of Julius Caesar ; others, to some conspiracy against 
Augustus. On Caesareo, see Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 211, R. 4. — 204. 
Tibi. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. So Jovi, v. 205. Tuorura. 
Gr. 441. 1. A. & S. 205, R. 7. N. 1. — 205. Qui. Gr. 453. A. & S. 
206 (17). — 210. Admissum = crime. Sit. Gr. 525. A. & S. 
265. So sit, v. 214. —212. Quam. Gr. 551. II. A. & S. 271, R. 4. 
Olympo. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 (b). — 214. Longa mora 
est . . . enumerare = it is tedious to tell. Noxae = of crime. 
Gr. 396. III. 2. 3) (3). A. & S. 212, R. 3 and {b). — 216. Maenala, 
Cyllene, Lycaei ; mountains in Arcadia. Transieram. Gr. 234. 
A. & S. 162. 7 {b). Latebris. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 217. 
Pineta. Gr. 317. 2. A. & S. 100. 7. — 218. Arcados ; adjective 
with tyranni. Gr. 68. 2. A. & S. 68. 1. The use of the word here 
is an instance of prolepsis (anticipation), since Arcadia took its name 
from Areas, the grandson of Lycaon. — 219. Traherent. Gr. 518. 
I. A. & S. 263. 5, R. 2. On Ingredior, see Gr. 467. III. A. & S. 
259. 1 (a). — 220. Venisse. Gr. 551. I. 3. A. & S. 272. N. 1. — 
221. Irridet = derides ; here transitive. Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 232 
(2). — 222. Deus hie ... an sit mortalis = whether he is a god 
or a mortal. Gr. 526. II. 2. A. & S. 265, R. 2. Discrimine = 
test. — 224. Nocte. Gr. 426. A. & S. 253, and N. 1. — 225. Illi. 
Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2.-226. Eo. Gr. 419. IV. A. & S. 
244. Molossa. The Molossi were a people of Epirus. — 228. 
Atque ita = quo facto, or postea. — 229. Mollit. See on v. 200. 
— 230. Quos . . mensis. Gr. 386. 1. A. & S. 224. N. 1. Simul 
= simul ac. Vindice flamma = with avenging flame ; i. e. light- 
ning. Penates. The household gods were responsible for what 
was done in the house. — 233. Exululat = howls forth. Ex is in- 
tensive here. Ab ipso ; i. e. from his own ferocious nature. Hence 



374 NOTES ON OVID. 

also solitae, in next line. — 235. Vertitur = he turns (himself). The 
word is used reflexively, like the middle voice in Greek. San- 
guine. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1 (2). — 236. Abeunt = mutan- 
tur. — 238. Est. (sc. ei) = he has. — 239. Idem = iidem. — 241. 
Non . . una = not one alone. Perire. Gr. 552. 3. A. & S. 244, 
R. 2 (b) and 270, R. 1 (b). — 240. Erinnys. The Furies were 
Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. They were employed by the gods 
to punish the impious, both on the earth and in the lower world. — 
242. Jurasse. See on v. 152. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272, N. 1. Pu- 
tes. Gr. 486. I. A. & S. 260. II. Dent. Gr. 487. A. & S. 260, 
R. 6. Ociua. Gr. 444. 1. A. & S. 122, R. 3.-243. Sententia; 
sc. mea. 

THE DELUGE AND THE STORY OF DEUCALION AND 
PYRRHA. [vv. 244-415.] — 244. Probant. Gr.461. 1. A. & S. 
209, R. 11. Frementi; sc. ei. Gr. 386. 1. A. & S. 224, N. 1.— 245. 
Partes — implent = fulfil their part by assent; an allusion to the 
Roman senate. — 246. Dolori. Gr. 390. I. A. & S. 227. — 247. 
Sit futura. Gr. 481. III. 1. ; 525. A. & S. 260, R. 7 (2) ; 265. 
Mortalibus. Gr. 399. 5. 3). A. & S. 250. 2 (1). — 249. Peris. 
Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 223. Paret. See on sit, v. 247. — 250. Sibi . . . 
curae. See on dolori, v. 246. Pore depends on the verbum dicendi 
implied in vetat. Gr. 530. II. 1. A. & S. 270, R. 2 (b). — 251. 
Trepidare vetat. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 273, 2 (a). — 252. Po- 
pulo. Gr. 391. A. & S. 222, R. 1. Origine mira = of miracu- 
lous origin. — 253. Erat . . . sparsurus. Gr. 228. A. & S. 162. 
14. — 254. Sacer = sacred ; because it is the home of the gods. 
— 255. Conciperet. Gr. 492. 4. 1). A. & S. 262, R. 7. Axis; 
for heaven itself. — 256. Esse. The clause, affore, etc., is the sub- 
ject of esse. Gr. 551. I. 3. A. & S. 239, R. 4; 272, N. I. Esse in 
fatis = that it is fated ; i. e. the Fates had decreed. The three Fates, 
or Parcae, were the supreme arbiters of the destinies, not only of 
men, but of the gods themselves. Even Jupiter must submit to 
them. Their names were Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. — 258. 
Ardeat. Gr. 501. 1. A. & S. 264. 6 and N. 1. Lab oret = shall per- 
ish. — 259. Cyclopum. The Cyclopes were the workmen of Vulcan, 
(see on v. 5,) and made the thunderbolts of Jupiter. Cf. Virgil, A. 
III. 569 foil, and Horace, C. I. 4. 7. — 261. Perdere is in apposition 
with poena. Gr. 553. II. A. & S. 204, R. 9; 273, N. 9, where this 
use of the infin. should be added. — 262. Aeoliis . . . antris = in 
the caves of Aeolus. The Aeolian (now Lipari) islands, near Sicily, 
were the abode of the winds, over whom Aeolus was king. Cf. 
Virg. A. I. 52 foil. Aquilonem == the north wind ; which, in Italy, 
generally brings dry weather. Cf. v. 328. — 263. Inductas ; sc. 
coelo. — 264. Notum = the south wind ; which brings rain. — 265. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK I. 375 

Vultum. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. and R. 1. —266. Capillis. Gr. 
422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 (b). — 267. Fronte ; poetic abl. of place. 
See on v. 92. Sinusque = and the folds of his robe. — 270. Ju- 
nonis. Juno was the sister and wife of Jupiter, and the queen of 
heaven. Iris, daughter of Thaumas (whence she is called Thanman- 
tiasj and Electra, was the goddess of the rainbow, and the attend- 
ant and messenger of Juno. Colores. Gr. 374. 7. A. & S. 234, 
R. 1 (a). — 271. Concipit = draws up. Nubibus. Gr. 386. 1. 
A. & S. 224, N. 1. —272. Colonis. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 
5(1). —274. Coelo. See on v. 226. — 275. Frater = Neptune, 
brother of Jupiter, and god of the sea. See on v. 113. — 277. 
Hortamine. Gr. 419. I. A. & S. 245. I. — 278. Utendum ; sc. 
mihi. Gr. 301. 2 ; 388. I. A. & S. 184. 3 ; 225. III. and R. 1. — 
279. Domos = fountains. The source of the stream was the home 
of the river-god. Mole = literally, the dam or barrier ; here, what- 
ever confines or restrains the river. — 280. Fluminibus. Gr. 386. 
1. A. & S. 224. Totas — habenas = give loose reins. — 281. 
Fontibus. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 282. Volvun- 
tur. See on vertitur, v. 235. — 286. Satis = crops. — 287. 
Penetralia ; the inmost part of the house, the shrine of the Penates ; 
here = temples. Sacris = the images of the gods. — 288. Qua. 
Gr. 190. 1 & 2. A. & S. 137, R. (3). Mansit. Gr. 508. A. & S. 
261, R. 1. — 289. Malo. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. — 290. 
Pressae = submerged. — 292. Erat. Gr. 462. 2. A. & S. 209, 
R. 9. Some editions have erant. Ponto. Gr. 386. 2. A. & S. 
226, R. 2. — 293. Hie ; sc. homo. Cymba ; poetic abl. of place. 
See on v. 92. — 294. Ducit = plies. Ararat. Gr. 234. A. & S. 
162. 7 (a). —296. Summa. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17.— 
297. Figitur. See on mansit, v. 288. — 302. Nereides. See on 
v. 192. —303. Ramis. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Agitata. See 
on congestos, v. 153. — 305. Fulminis ; a common metaphor in de- 
scriptions of the boar. Apro. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. So 
quibus. v. 311. — 307. Terris. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. Possit. 
Gr. 486. III. A. & S. 264, R. 3. — 311. Pars; sc. hominum. — 
312. Inopi victu = by want of food. — 313. Aonios (sc. arvos) = 
Aonia, or Boeotia, a district of Greece, N. W. from Attica. Oetaeis 
= Thessalian ; Oeta being a mountain range of Thessaly. Phocis, 
a district lying west of Boeotia, on the Corinthian gulf. The prose 
order is, Phocis, terra ferax, dum terra ftiit, Aonios ab Oetaeis arvis 
separat. — 314. Tempore. Gr. 426. 2. — 316. Verticibus. Gr. 
428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 317. Nomine. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 
1. Parnasus, or Parnassus, was sacred to Apollo and the Muses. — 
318. Deucalion; son of Prometheus, and King of Phthia, in 
Thessaly. — 319. Consorte tori ; his wife Pyrrha, daughter of 



376 NOTES ON OVID. 

Epimetheus and Pandora. — 320. Corycidas = Corycian ; from 
a cave in Parnasus. Numina ; sc. cetera. — 321. Themin. Gr. 
93. 2. A. & S. 80 and Ex. 2. Themis, the daughter of Coelus and 
Terra, was the goddess of right, or justice, and held the Delphic 
oracle (tunc oracla tenebat) as the successor of Terra and previous to 
Apollo. Oracla \ syncopated form of oracula. — 322. Illo = Deu- 
calion. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. So ilia (=Pyrrha) in next line. 
Aequi. Gr. 399. 2. 1) ; 441. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (2) ; 213. — 324. 
Stagnare = to be overflowed. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272. So 
superesse. — 325. Ovid is fond of repetitions like this. Unum ; sc. 
hominem. — 326. Unam ; sc. feminam. — 328. Nimbis. Gr. 
431. A. & S. 257. So telo, v. 330, and signo, v. 334. — Aquilone. 
Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 329. Aethera. Gr. 93. 1. A. & S. 80, 
R. So aera, v. 337. — 330. Telo = tridente. See v. 283. — 331. 
Pelagi. Gr. 47. II. A. & S. 51. — 332. Humeros. Gr. 380. 
A. & S. 234. II. Innato murice = with native purple. Murex, a 
shell-fish from which a purple dye was obtained. — 333. Tritona 
= Triton, son of Neptune and Amphitrite, and herald of the sea- 
gods. Conchae. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 334. Inspirare. Gr. 
551. II. 1. A. & S. 273. 2 (d). — 335. Illi. Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 
225. II. —336. In — imo = which increases in width from the 
end of the cone ; i. e. the mouth-piece. On imo, see Gr. 441. 6. 
A. & S. 205, R. 17. — 337. Concepit aera = has received the air ; 
has been blown. — 338. Voce replet = fills with its blast. Sub 
— Phoebo = under each Phoebus ; i. e. from the east to the west. 
Phoebus (the Bright) is the title of Apollo as the Sun-god. — 339. 
Tunc quoque refers back to v. 281 ; as they had then obeyed, 
so now also. Dei. Gr. 669. II. A. & S. 306. — 340. Cecinit 
receptus = sounded the retreat. — 341. Undis. Gr. 388. 3. 
A. & S. 225. II. The waves are personified. — 342. Quibus, 
Gr. 445. 8. A. & S. 206 (3). Omnes ; sc. undas. — 345. Undis, 
Gr. 431. A. & S. 257.-346. Diem. Gr. 120. A. & S. 90. 1. N, 
Nudata ; sc. aauis, not foliis ; as shown by fronde in next line* 
Some, however, make fronde = ramis. — 348. Redditus . . 
erat = had reappeared. Apertum; sc. esse. Gr. 551. I. A. & S 
272. — 349. Terras, subject, silentia, object, of agere. — 351. O 
soror, o conjux ; i. e. thou who art my all. — 352. Fatruelis 
origo. See on vv. 318, 319. Prometheus and Epimetheus were sons 
of Japetus. — 353. Delude is here, as often in verse, a dissyllable. 
See on dei, v. 339. — 354, 355. Terrarum . . . turba = the whole 
population of the earth. — 356, 357. Haec — satis = we have 
not yet sufficiently certain assurance of our lives. — 358. Tibi. 
Gr. 387 ; 204. 1. A. & S. 226 and R. 2. Si . . . erepta fuisses. 
Gr. 510. A. & S. 261. 1. So haberet, v. 361. — 359. Aniini. Gr. 






METAMORPHOSES. BOOK I. 377 

396. III. 2. 3), (3). A. & S. 212, R. 3. — 360. Posses. Gr. 486. 
II. A. & S. 260, R. 5. Quo — doleres ? = who would console you 
in your grief? Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 361, 362. See on v. 325. 
— 363. O utinam. t Gr. 669. I. 2. A. & S. 305 (1). Possem. 
Gr. 488. 1 & 2. A. & S. 263. 1 & R. Paternis artibus = by my 
father's art ; as my father, Prometheus, made men of clay, and ani- 
mated them with fire stolen from heaven. — 364. Terrae. See on 
conchae, v. 333. — 366. Visum ; sc. est. — 367. Placuit (sc. Us) 
= it pleased them ; they resolved. — 368. Sortes = oracle. — 
369. Cephisidas ; Greek form of the ace. pi. 3d decl. See Gr. 98. 
A. & S. 85, Ex. 2, which apply to adjectives as well as nouns. The 
Cephisus, or Cephissus, was the chief river of Phocis, flowing past 
Parnasus and Delphi. There was a large river of the same name in 
Attica, and several of less note in other parts of Greece. Undas. 
Gr. 386. 3. A. & S. 233 (3). — 370. Ut — secantes = which, 
though not yet clear, were flowing in their wonted channel. — 371. 
Inde = ex Cephiso. Libatos — liquores = they had sprinkled 
the consecrated waters ; as an act of purification before entering the 
Temple. — 372. Vestibus. Gr. 386. 1. A. & S. 224.-373. 
Deae = Themis. See v. 321. — 374. Pallebant = were foul. 
Pallere is used of any unnatural, sickly color. — 376. Humi = on 
the ground. Gr. 424. 2. A. & S. 221, R. 3. — 378. Remollescunt. 
Gr. 508. A. & S. 261, R. 1. — 379. Die. Gr. 237. A. & S. 162. 4. 
Themi. Gr. 94. 1. A. & S. 81, R— 380. Sit. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. 
Fer. See on die, v. 379. Mersis = ruined. Rebus = fortunes. 
Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 223. — 381. Templo. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 
255, R. 3 (6). — 383. Parentis limits ossa. — 385. Prior. Gr. 
443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15 {b). Jussis. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, 
R. 2. — 386. Det. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 387. Jac- 
tati. See on congestos, v. 153. — 388. Caecis — latebris = in- 
volved in dark mystery. — 390. Fromethiades. Gr. 316. A. & S. 
100. 1 {a) and {b). So Epimethida, on which see also Gr. 93. 1. 
A. & S. 80. I. — 391. Aut fallax — nobis = either my penetra- 
tion is at fault. Nobis, for mihi. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. — 394. 
Diet Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272. — 395. Augurio = interpretation, 
explanation. Titania = Pyrrha, who was the granddaughter of 
Japetus, one of the Titans. Mota est. Gr. 516. I. A. & S. 263. 
2 (4). —396. Spes — est = but her hope is mingled with fear. — 

397. Monitis. See on jussis, v. 385. Quid. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 
232 (3). — 399. Sua post vestigia =post terga sua. — 400. Cre- 
dat. Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 260, R. 5. Nisi — vetust as = if an- 
tiquity were not witness for it ; i. e. if it had not been believed for ages. 
On sit, see Gr. 509. A. & S. 261, R. 3. —402. Mora = gradually ; 
after a time. Ducere formam = to take shape ; to assume a new 



378 NOTES ON OVID. 

form. — 403. mis ; dat. with contigit. — 404 - 407. Ut — signis, 

The English order is, Ut quaedam forma hominis potest videri,-~non 
sic manifesto., sed uti coepta de marmore, non satis exacta, simillimaque 
rudibus signis. Cf. v. 370. De marmore coepta = just begun in 
marble. Simillima. Gr. 163. 2. A. & S. 125. 2. Signis = stat- 
uis. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. —407, 408. Quae — usum — 
whatever part of them was moist with any fluid and earthy, was 
changed into flesh ; literally, for the use of the body. Corpus = caro. 
Versa est ; sc. ea pars. — 410. Vena = the vein in the stone. — 
411. Spatio. See on tempore, v. 314. Numine. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 249. II. — 412. Faciem — virilem = took the form of 
men. — 413. Et — jactu = and woman (the female race) was re- 
stored by the throwing of the woman ; i. e. from the stones thrown 
by Pyrrha. — 414. Inde — sumus ; imitated from Virgil, G. I. 63. 
Laborum. Gr. 399. 2. 1). A. & S. 213. — 415. Simus. Gr. 525. 
A. & S. 265. Origine. Gr. 425. 3. 1). A. & S. 246. 



METAMORPHOSES. Book II. 



THE STORY OF PHAETHON.— Phaethon was the son of Phoe- 
bus, or Apollo, and the nymph Clymene, the daughter of Oceanus. 
His divine origin having been called in question by Epaphus, the son 
of Jupiter and Io, he appeals to his mother, who, after assuring him 
that he is the son of Phoebus, advises him to go to the god himself 
for proof of the truth of her story. He sets out at once, and Ovid 
here tells us the result of his visit to his father. 

1. Columnis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. I. — 2. Pyropo. Pliny 
makes the pyropus an alloy of copper and gold. Flammas imitans 
is a literal translation of its Greek name. — 3. The prose order is, 
Cujus fastigia summa ebur nitidum tenebat. Cttjus refers to regia. — 
5. Mulciber = Vulcan, the Roman god of fire, identified with the 
Greek Hephaistos, son of Jupiter and Juno, or, according to later 
traditions, of Juno alone. His father, in a fit of anger, kicked him 
out of heaven, and after falling a whole day, he alighted on the island 
of Lemnos, which became his favorite abode. Other volcanic islands 
also, as Lipara, Imbros, and Sicily, are called his abodes, or work- 
shops. Homer places his workshop in a splendid palace on Olym- 
pus. The palaces of all the gods were built by him, and the ancient 
poets abound in descriptions of marvellous and beautiful things which 
he made for gods and men. — The ancients derived the name Mulci- 
ber from mtdcere, to soften, and ferrum, iron. — 6. Caelarat. Gr. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK II. 379 

234. A. & S. 162. 7 (a) — 7. Orbi. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 8. 
Tritona. See on I. 333. — 9. Frotea. Proteus, the son of Oce- 
anus and Tethys, kept the flocks of Neptune. He had the gift of 
prophecy and the power of changing himself into any shape ; and he 
was famous for taking advantage of the latter, to avoid being com- 
pelled to exercise the former. Homer places his residence in the 
island Pharos ; Virgil, in Carpathos, between Crete and Rhodes. 
Hence, Milton (Comus) calls Proteus " the Carpathian wizard." — 10. 
Aegaeona. Aegaeon is here a sea-god. Homer identifies him 
with Briareus, the hundred-handed son of Uranus. In the earliest 
legends, he and his brothers assist Zeus ( Jupiter ) in his war with the 
Titans ; in some of the later ones, he is one of the giants who at- 
tacked Olympus. See I. 152 foil. Prementem terga = insidentem 
tergis. — 11. Dorida. Doris was the daughter of Oceanus and 
Tethys, and the wife of Nereus. See on I. 187. For the form of 
the word, see Gr. 93. 1. A. & S. 80. I. Natas = the Nereids, the 
fifty daughters of Nereus and Doris. Videntur. Gr. 461. 1. 
A. & S. 209, R. 11. — 12. Mole = a rock. Virides, like caeruleos 
(v. 8), is a frequent epithet of the sea-gods. Siccare and vehi, like 
fiare, depend on videntur. — 13. Omnibus. Gr. 387. A. & S. 
226. Supply est. — 14. Qualem; sc.faciem. Decet. Gr. 556. I. 
A. & S. 229, R. 7 (fine print), and 269, R. 2. — 18. Signa = signs 
of the Zodiac. Poribus. Gr. 133 ; 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 94 ; 254, 
R. 3. — 19. Simul = simul ac, as often in poetry. Clymeneia 
proles = the son of Clymene. — 20. Dubitati ; since his pater- 
nity had been questioned by Epaphus. — 21. Vultus ; pi. for sing. 
vultum, as often in Ovid. — 25. Dies, Mensis, etc., are not divin- 
ities, but mere personifications of the divisions of time, introduced by 
the poet as attendants upon the Sun. So Horae here seem to be 
the hours, and not, as usual, the seasons, which are separately men- 
tioned and described in vv. 26 - 30. — 27. Florente = flowery. — 
30. Capillos. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 31. Loco medius 
= in the centre. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Novitate. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 247. 1 (2). — 33. Quaeque. The que does not belong to 
the address of Phoebus, but to the narration : Et ait: quae, etc. Tibi. 
See on omnibus, v. 13. Arce. See cmforibus,v. 18. — 34. Parenti. 
Gr. 388. I. A. & S. 225. III. — 36. Si das. Gr. 508. A. & S. 261, 
R. 1. — 37. Falsa . . . sub imagine = under a false pretence. — 
38. Propago. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. — 39. Credar. Gr. 500. 
A. & S. 264. 5. Animis. Gr. 425. A. & S. 242. — 42. Amplexu. 
Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. So me, v. 45. Negari. See on perire, I. 
240. — 43. Veros . . . edidit ortus = has declared your true pater- 
nity. — 44. Quoque = and that. Dubites. Gr. 490 ; 497. A. & S. 
262 and R. 9. — 45, 46. Promissi — palus = Let the stream (i. e. 



380 NOTES ON OVID. 

the Styx), by which the gods swear, be witness of the promise! 
Cf. Virgil. A. VI. 323 ; Stygiamque paludem, Di cujus jurare tivient 
etfallere numen. Dis. See on v. 34. — Oculis. Gr. 391. A. & S. 
222. 3. — 49. Poenituit. Gr. 556. I. A. & S. 215, R. and 229, R. 
6. Jurasse =juravisse. — 51. Tua ; sc. voce. My promise has been 
proved rash by your request. Liceret. Gr. 488. 1 and 2. A. & S. 
263. 1 and R. — 52. Dare. Gr. 556. I. A. & S. 269, R. 2. So dis- 
suadere, next line. Negarem. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 54. 
Viribus. Gr. 384. 1. A. & S. 223. So annis, next line. Istis. Gr. 
450. A. & S. 207, R. 25. — 55. Munera is to be joined with magna 
as well as with the relative clause. — 56. Nou est mortale (sc. id) 
= is not for mortals ; i. e. is beyond mortal powers. — 57. Superis. 
Gr. 387. A. & S. 226.-58. Placeat — licebit = Let each (of 
the gods) think what he pleases of himself; i. e. I care not what the 
other gods flatter themselves they can do ; no one but I can drive 
the chariot of the sun. On placeat, see Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 
4. — 59. Axe = cumc. — 60. Me. See on amplexu, v. 42. — 62. 
Agat. Gr. 485, A. & S. 260, R. 4. Jove. Gr. 417. A. & S. 
256. 2. — 63. Prima. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. So medio, 
next line, and ultima, v. 67. — 64. Enituntur = climb up. Altis- 
sima; sc. via. Coelo. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 
65. Ipsi. Gr. 452. A. & S. 207, R. 28. Mihi. Gr. 390. II. 2. 
A. & S. 227, R. 4. — 66. Fit. Gr. 549. A. & S. 209, R. 3 (5). 
Pectus, sc. meum. Gr. 447. A. & S. 207, R. 36 (c). — 67. Mod- 
eramine certo = " a firm rein." Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 250. 2 (2). 
— 68. Subjectis = lying below. — 69. In praeceps = headlong. 
On ferar, see Gr. 492. 4. 1. A. & S. 262, R. 7. Tethys ; the wife 
of Oceanus, and the greatest of the sea-goddesses. — 70. Adde 
quod. Gr. 554. IV. A. & S. 273, N. 8. Assidua — vertigines 
is hurried round with continual whirl. — 71. Celerique volumine 
= with swift revolution. — 72. Cetera ; sc. sidera. The sphere of 
the heavens, with the stars, revolves from west to east, while the sun 
makes his way in the opposite direction (nitor in adversum and con- 
trarius evehor), from east to west. — 73. Orbi. Gr. 391. A. & S. 
222, R. 1. —74, 75. Finge = suppose (like fac). Gr. 558. IV. 2. 
A. & S. 273, N. 3. Poterisne — axis = Can you resist the revolu- 
tion of the heaven, so that its swift motion shall not bear you away ? 
The critics generally either do not explain the passage, or make 
axis = currus. Haupt explains citus axis as " die Schnelligkeit der 
sick umdrehenden Himmelsaxe," the swiftness of the revolving axis 
of the heavens, which seems to us the only possible meaning. Au- 
ferat. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262, R. 5. — 77. Concipias. Gr. 486. 
I. A. & S. 260, R. 4. Donis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 2 (1). — 78. 
Esse. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272. — Formas ferarum; i. e. the 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK II. 38 1 

constellations of the zodiac, eight of which represent animals. See 
w. 80-83. — 79. Teneas. Gr. 516. II. A. & S. 262, R. 2. — Ad- 
versi (sc. tibi) = fronting you. The head of Taurus is turned to 
the east. 80. Haemoniosque arcus = the Haemonian bow ; i. e. 
Sagittarius. Chiron, the Centaur, of Thessaly (or Haemonia), was 
changed into this constellation, according to some legends. — 83. 
Scorpion. Gr. 46. 1. A. & S. 54. Aliter = in the opposite di- 
rection. — 84. Tibi. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 222, R. 8, N. Ignibus. 
Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 85. Ore. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 242. — 
86. In promptu = easy. — 87, Habenis. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, 
R. 2 — 88. Sim. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262. So credas, v. 90. — 89. 
Dum resque = et dum res. — 91. Timendo = by my fears for 
you. Gr. 566. I. A. & S. 275, R. 4.-92. Esse. Gr. 549. 4. 
A. & S. 271, R. 2.-93. Posses. Gr. 488. 1 and 2. A. & S. 263. 
1 and R — 94. Deprendere = cognoscere. — 98. Nomine. Gr. 
429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 100. Ignare. Cf. nescius, v. 58. — 101. 
Ne. Gr. 538. 1 and 2. A. & S. 267, R. 1. Undas. Gr. 371. 3. 
A. & S. 232 (2). See on v. 46. —103. Dictis. See on v. 87. 
Die = Phaethon. — 104. Cupidine currus = with desire for the 
chariot. — 105. Qm&. = quatenus. — 106. Vulcania. Gr. 398. 2. 
A. & S. 211, R. 4. See on v. 5. Munera. Gr. 363. A. & S. 

204. — 107. Summae rotae = of the rim of the wheel. Gr. 441. 
6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. — 108. Radiorum ordo = the range of 
spokes. — 109. Ex ordine = in order. — 111. Magnanimus = 
ambitious, aspiring. — 114, 115. Agmina cogit and coeli sta- 
tione are metaphors drawn from military life. Novissimus = last. 
Cf. novissimum agmen (Caes.)=the rear. — 116-118. Pater . . . 
Titan = Phoebus. Helios, or Sol, the god of the sun, was the son 
of the Titan Hyperion, and hence is often called Titan. Later, he 
became identified with Phoebus, or Apollo ; but it was not until after 
the time of Virgil that the identification was completely carried out, 
and Apollo was said to drive the chariot of the sun. For similar 
separation of nominatives, see Virgil, A. I. 195, 196, 411, 412, 717, 
718; II. 403, 404; IV. 91,92, etc. Extremae = fading. Jungere. 
Gr. 551. II. 1 and 2. A. & S. 273. 2, N. 4 {a) and {b). Horis. 
See on v. 87. — 119. Celeres = celeriter. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 

205, R. 15 {a). Vomentes; with quadrupedes. — 120. Suco. Gr. 
148. 3. 2) ; 399. 5. 3). A. & S. 105, R 1 ; 213, R. 5 (3). Prae- 
sepibus. Gr. 145; 422. 2. A. & S. 99; 255, R. 3 (£). — 121. 
Prena.. 143. 2. A. & S. 92. 5. — 123. Rapidae — flammae=« 
made it (his face) able to endure the fierce flame. Gr. 399. 2. 1). 
A. & S. 213, R. 1 (2). On rapidae, cf. Virg. G. I. 92. —124. 
Comae. Gr. 386. 1. A. & S. 224, N. 1. Luctus. Gr. 399. 2. 2). 
A. & S. 213, R 1 (3).— 125. Pectore. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, 



382 NOTES ON OVID. 

R. 3 (3). — 126. Potes. Gr. 508 and 2. A. & S. 261, R. 1. Monitis. 
See on v. 87. So stimtdis, next line. — 127. Parce stimulis = 
spare the whip. Loris = frenis. Gr. 419. I. A. & S. 245. I. — 
128. Inhibere. Gr. 549. 1. A. & S. 209 (5). — 129 - 132. 
Directos is opposed to obliquum. The five direct circles are the 
equator, the tropics, and the polar circles ; the oblique path is the 
ecliptic, which, cutting the equator and touching the tropics on either 
side, is zonarum trium contentus fine, confined within the 
boundaries of three zones, i. e. the torrid and the two temperate. 
Cf, Virg. G. I. 238. Junctam — Arcton = the north pole. See on 
I. 262. Arcton is, literally, the constellation of the Bear {Ursa Major 
or Minor), near the north pole. For the form, see Gr. 46. 1. A. & S. 
54. — 133. Hac ; sc. parte = 'm this direction ; i. e. along the ecliptic. 
Sit. Gr. 488. II. A. & S. 260, R. 6, — 134. Ferant. Gr. 489. 
A. & S. 262. — 135. Nee — currum = neither drive too low, nor 
urge the chariot through the uppermost air. On summum, see Gr. 
441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. Aethera. Gr. 93. 1. A. & S. 80, R. 
— 136,137. Altius = too high. Gr.444. 1. A. & S. 122, R. 3. 
So inferius = too low. — 138. Dexterior ; sc. rota. Gr. 163. 1. 
A. & S. 125. 4. Declinet. See on sit, v. 133. So ducat, next line. 
Anguem = the Snake or Dragon, the constellation Draco, which 
winds between the Bears. Cf. III. 45 and Virg. G. I. 244. — 139. 
Aram = the Altar, a constellation in the southern hemisphere, near 
Scorpio. It is called pressam, because, in northern latitudes, it is 
never seen far above the horizon. — 140. Inter — tene (sc. cursum) 
= hold your course between the two. — 141. Juvet. Gr. 500. 
A. & S. 264 and 5. So consulat. — 142. Hesperio — metas = 
the goal fixed on the western shore ; i. e. of the Atlantic, where day 
and night in turn finish their course. — 143. Libera nobis = per- 
mitted me. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. — 144. Poscimur = I 
am called for ; I must go. Aurora was the goddess of the dawn, 
daughter of Hyperion and Thia, or, according to Ovid, of Pallas. 
She announced the coming of the sun to the gods as well as to mor- 
tals. —146, 147. Tibi. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 222, R. 8, N. Consiliis 
and curribus. Gr. 419. I. A. & S. 245. 1. Sedibus. Gr. 386. 
A. & S. 224. — 149. Spectes. Gr. 500. A. & S. 264. 1 (b). Sine 
= permit. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 273. 4. —150. Levem. Cf. 
v. 161. Corpore. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1 (1). — 152. Grates 
agit =gratias agit. The former is the more solemn, and therefore 
more poetical, expression. Inde ; i. e. from the chariot. — 153, 154. 
The names of the horses are Greek : Pyroeis, or Pyrois, the fiery one ; 
Eous, the early (from Eos, dawn) ; Aethon, the burning ; and Phlegon, 
the flaming. — 155. Repagula=the barriers, which were placed to 
keep the horses from starting before the proper time. — 156. Tethys. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK II. 383 

See on v. 69. Nepotis = Phaethon. Clymene was the daughter of 
Tethys. — 157. Repulit Gr. 669. V. A. & S. 307, 2 (1) and (2). 
Facta — mundi = full scope of the boundless heavens was allowed, 
them. — 158. Corripuere viam = sped on their way. Cf. Virg. A. 
I. 418. Aera ; a Greek form. See on aethera, v. 135. — 160. Isdem 
= iisdem. Gr. p. 61, foot note, and 669. II. A. & S. 306. I (1). — 161. 
Nee — possent = and not such as they could feel. Gr. 501. I. A. 
& S. 264. 1 (a) and (b). — 162. Jugum. = currtcs. Gravitate. Gr. 
419. III. A. & S. 250 (2). — 163. Utque = and as ; correlative to sic, 
v. 165. Juste- — pondere. Gr. 352. 4. A. & S. 202. I. 2. — 164. 
Levitate ; with instabiles. See on corpore, v. 150. — 165. Onere. 
Gr. 399. 5. 3). A. & S. 250. 2. In aera. Some editions have in aere. 
— 166. Inani; sc. currui. Gr. 399. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. — 167, 
168. Tritum spatium = the beaten path. Quo prius (sc. cur- 
rebant)= in which they ran before. — 169,170. Flectat and sit. 
Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Sciat and imperet. Gr. 509. A. & S. 
261, R. 3. —171, 172. Triones (or Septem triones) = the Oxen, 
seven bright stars in the constellation Ursa Major, known also as 
"Charles's Wain" (cf. the ancient Plaustra) and "the Dipper." 
Here, as in Virg. A. I. 744, the two Bears may be meant. Vetito . . . 
aequore. Juno asked Oceanus and Tethys not to allow Callisto, 
who had been changed into the constellation Ursa Major, to set in 
the sea. Cf. Virg. G. I. 246. — 173. Quaeque . . . Serpens = 
and the Dragon, which, etc. See on v. 138: Polo. See on inani, 
v. 166. — 174. Frigore pigra = sluggish with cold. UllL Gr. 
391. A. & S. 222, R. 1 (c). — 176. Boote ; literally, tke driver of 
oxen (see on v. 171), a constellation near Ursa Major, also called 
A returns and Arctophylax, the gicard of the Bear. It is now known 
as Bootes, and its brightest star as Arcturus. On fugisse, see Gr. 
551. I. A. & S. 272. — 177. Tardus = slow ; because near the 
pole and therefore describing a smaller circle about it. Plaustra 
= the Triones. See on v. 171. — On eras, see Gr. 516. II. 3. A. & S. 
263. 2 (2). — 178. Aethere. Gr. 434. 1. A. & S. 242, R. 1. —179. 
Penitus penitusque jacentes = lying far, far below. The repe- 
tition is emphatic. — 182. Mallet == he would rather. Gr. 486. I. 
A. & S. 261, R. 4. —183. Cognosse. Gr. 234. 2. A. & S. 162. 7 
(a). Piget; sc enm. Gr. 410. 6. A. & S. 215, R. Valuisse 
rogando = to have prevailed by his entreaties. Gr. 566. I. A. & S. 
275, R 4. — 184. Meropis; sc. films. Gr. 397. 1 (1). A. & S. 211, 
R 7 (1). Merops was the husband of Clymene, and king of the 
Ethiopians. Dici = to be called. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 271, R. 4. 
— 185. Praecipiti = rapido ; literally, headlong. Pinus = navis. 
Cf. I. 95. Cui Gr. 384. A. & S. 223 and N. — 186. Quam refers 
to pinus. Votis ; i. e. of the pilot (rector) or the sailors. — 187. 



384 NOTES ON OVID. 

Faciat. Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 260, R. 5. Multum coeli. Gr. 396. 
III. 2. 3) (3). A. & S. 212, R. 3. — 189, 190. Modo . . . inter- 

dum = modo . . . modo = now . . . now. Gr. 360. 1. A. & S. 277, R. 8. 
Quos — est = which it is not permitted him to reach ; literally, not 
fated for him. —191. Agat. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 192. Novit 
= knows. Gr. 297. I. 2. A. & S. 183, N. 3. — 193. Vario = di- 
versified (with constellations). Miracula = monsters ; the simulacra 
of the next line. 

195. Concavat = curvat. — 196. Scorpios = the Scorpion, 
one of the constellations of the zodiac. See on v. 78 and v. 83. — 197. 
At first, the Scorpion occupied the space of two constellations ; later, 
the place held by its claws was assigned to Libra. Cf. Virg. G. I. 
32 - 35. — 199. Cuspide ; so. caudae. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. 
— 200. Mentis. Gr. 399. 2. 2) (3). A. & S. 213, R. 1 (3). — 201. 
Summo. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. Tergo. Gr. 422. 1. 2). 
A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 202. Exspatiantur = they leave the road. 
Nullo. Gr. 431 ; 457. 2. A. & S. 257 ; 207, R. 31 (c). — 205. 
Stellis. See on ramis, I. 302. — 206. Summa ; sc. /oca. So 
decliva, a rare form for declivia. So above, v. 19, acclivus for the 
usual acclivis. — 208, 209. Luna = Diana, the sister of Phoebus 
and goddess of the moon, who drives her chariot round the earth in 
a smaller circle, and who wonders now to see her brother's horses 
running below (inferius) her own. Suis ; sc. equis. Gr. 41 7. 
A. & S. 256. 2. Currere. Gr. 551. III. A. & S. 273, N. 7. Fra- 
ternos. Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 211, R. 4 (a). — 210. Ut quaeque 
altissima = according as each (part) is highest. — 211. A git 
rimas = it cracks. Sucis. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 213. Damno. 
Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 223, N. — 215. Gentes = terras , or, as 
some explain it, tribes with the nations (populis) of which they form 
a part. — 217 - 226. In this list of mountains there is no regard to 
geographical order. The Greek forms of most of the names are given. 
Athos ; a mountain of Macedonia, now Monte Santo. Taurus 
Cilix ; a great range in Asia, a portion of which borders on Cilicia. 
Tmolus ; in Lydia. Cf. Virg. G. I. 56. Oete ; on the southern 
boundary of Thessaly. Ide ; in the vicinity of Troy. Helicon ; 
in Boeotia, sacred to the Muses ; hence Virgineus. Haemos ; in 
Thrace, not yet called Oeagrian, from Orpheus, son of Oeager. See 
Book XI. Aetne ; in Sicily, which now burns in immensum, i. e. 
furiously, and geminatis ignibus, with redoubled fires. Parnasus. 
See on I. 316. Eryx; in Sicily. Cf. Virg. A. V. 759. Cynthus ; 
in the island of Delos. Othrys ; in Thessaly. Rhodope; in 
Thrace, covered with perpetual snows. Mimas ; in Ionia. Din- 
dyma ; in Phrygia, on the frontiers of Galatia. Mycale ; on the 
coast of Ionia, with a city of the same name. Cithaeron ; in Boeo- 






METAMORPHOSES. BOOK II. 385 

tia, sacred to Bacchus, Jupiter, and the Muses ; hence natus ad sacra. 
Cf. Virg. A. IV. 303. Scythiae; the general name given by the 
poets to the cold regions to the north, little known to the Greeks and 
Romans. Caucasus ; a mountain chain between the Euxine and 
Caspian seas. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 367. Ossa and Olympus. See 
on I. 154. Pindus ; a range between Thessaly and Epirus. Alpes 
and Apenninus are the Alps and Apennines as known to us. On 
sua, v. 224, see Gr. 449. 2. A. & S. 208 (7) {a). On ambobus, v. 225, 
see Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. V. 226 is a spondaic line. Gr. 672. 3. 
A. & S. 310. I. 1. — 228. Nec sustinet = nor can he bear. — 231. 
Cineres = ashes ; favillam = hot ashes. — 233. Quoque — sit — 
and whither he is going or where he is. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 
234. Arbitrio = at the will. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 249. II. —235, 
236. Corpora summa = the surface of their bodies. Gr. 441. 6. 
A. & S. 205, R. 17. Traxisse = acquired. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 
272. — 237. Libye = Libya, or the African desert. Humoribus. 
Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. So sanguine, v. 235 above. Aestu. Gr. 
414. A. & S. 247. — 238. Passis = dishevelled ; from pandere. — 
239. Quaerit — Dircen = Boeotia misses Dirce ; a fountain near 
Thebes. — 240. Argos ; sc. quaerit. Argos is here put for Argolis, 
of which it was the chief city. Amymone ; a fountain near Lema, 
in Argos. Ephyre ; sc. quaerit ; the old name of Corinth. The 
fountain Pirene, sacred to the Muses, had its source on the mountain 
{Acrocorinthus) which served as the citadel of Corinth. — 241. Nec 
— ripas = nor do even the broad rivers ; literally, those which have 
obtained by lot banks far apart. Loco. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 
242 Tanais ; now the Don. — 243 - 253. Peneos ; in Thessaly. 
Senex ; since the river-gods are generally represented as aged in 
appearance. Caicus ; in Mysia, called Teuthranteus from Mount 
Teuthras, where it rises. Ismenos ; in Boeotia. Erymanthus ; 
in Arcadia, flowing past the city Psophis. Xaiithus ; near Troy. 
Iterum ; because destined to be set on fire by Vulcan, during the 
Trojan war. Lycormas ; in Aetolia, afterwards called E-veiius. 
Maeandros ; rising in Phrygia and flowing between Lydia and 
Caria, famous for its windings. Hence our word meander. Melas ; 
one of several rivers of the name in one of several districts called 
Mygdonia, it is hard to decide which. Eurotas ; in Laconia, empty- 
ing into the sea near the promontory of Taenarus. Euphrates ; the 
well-known river of Mesopotamia. Orontes ; in Syria. Thermo- 
don ; in Pontus, flowing into the Euxine. Ganges ; in India. 
Phasis; in Colchis. Ister ; the Danube. Alpheos; in Elis. The 
Spercheos was in Thessaly. Tagus ; in Spain. Caystro = the 
Cayster, in Lydia, or Maeonia, famous for its swans. Cf. Virg. G. I. 
383 foil. V. 247 is spondaic, the last syllable of Taenarius being 



386 NOTES ON OVID. 

lengthened by the arsis. Celebrabant, v. 252, = frequented, thronged, 
[Haupt. Cf. I. 172] or, as generally translated, made resound. — 
254-259. Nilus = the Nile. Extremum. See on summa, v. 
235. Quod adhuc latet ; and this has been true even down to our 
own day. Cf. Horace, C. IV. 14. 45 : fontium qui celat origines, Nilus ; 
and Tibullus, I. 7. 24 : Nile pater, quanam possum te dicere causa, Aut 
quibus in terris, occuluisse capitt ? Valles. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. 
Ismarios = Thracian (rivers), from Ismarus, a mountain of Thrace, 
near the Strymon and Hebrus. Hesperiosque — Padumque 
= and the rivers of the west, the Rhine, Rhone, and Po. Cui = to 
which river ; i. e. to Rome built on its banks. Rerum potentia = 
the sovereignty of the world. Thybrin = Tiberim, the Tiber ; the 
Greek form, as the more poetical. Gr. 93. 2. A. & S. 80. II. — 
260. Tartara; sing. Tartarus. Gr. 141. A. & S. 92. 1. Rimis. 
414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 261. Regem = Pluto, the king of the 
lower world. See on I. 113. Conjuge = Proserpina. See Book 
V. — 263. Pontus. Gr. 362. 2. 1). A. & S. 210. — 264. Existunt 
= emergicnt. Sparsas — augent = increase the number of islands. 
The Cyclades, a cluster of islands in the Aegean sea, are put for 
islands in general. — 265, Ima (sc. loca) = the bottom. — 267. 
Summo . . . profundo = on the surface of the deep. See on v. 

235. — 268, 269. Nerea . . . Doridaque. See on v. 11. Latu- 
isse. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272, N. 1. — 270. Aquis. Gr. 422. 2. 
A. & S. 242. — 272. Ponto. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 249. I. 274. In 
. . . viscera. The accusative is used because condiderant includes 
the idea of retiring into, as well as hiding. 275. Collo. Gr. 434. 2. 
A. & S. 241, R. 1. 276. Tremore. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. 
So voce, v. 278. — 277. Infra = inferius.— 219 - 281. Si placet 
hoc meruique = if this seems good (to thee) and I have deserved 
it. Gr. 508. A. & S. 261, R. 1. Quid. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). 
Deum. Gr. 45. 5. 4) ; 396. III. 2. 3) (2). A. & S. 53 ; 212, R. 2 (3). 
Liceat. Gr. 488. 1. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Periturae ; sc. mihi. Gr. 
385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. Viribus. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1 (2). 
So igne. Perire. Gr. 545. 2. 2) ; 549. A. & S. 269, R. 2 and R. 5. 
Auctore = by its author ; i. e. by the thought of the greatness of 
its author. — 285, 286. Hosne — refers = Is this the reward, this 
the recompense you give, etc. — 287. Anno. Gr. 378. 1. A. & S. 

236. — 288, 289. Alimenta Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. On pecori, 
generi, and vobis, see Gr. 284. II. A. & S. 223. — 290. Fac = 
suppose. Gr. 237 ; 558. IV. 2. A. & S. 162. 4 ; 273, N. 3. Un- 
dae ; sc. meruerunt. — 291. Prater ; sc. tuus = Neptune. Sorte ; 
when the three brothers divided the world among themselves by lot. 
See on I. 113. — 293. Quod — gratia = but if regard neither for 
your brother nor for me. Fratris. Gr. 396. II. A. & S. 211 and 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK II. 387 

R. 2. Mea. Gr. 398. 3. A. & S. 211, R. 3 (c). Tangit = moves. 
Gr. 508 and 2. A. & S. 261, R. 1. — 294. Coeli. Gr. 406. I. 
A. & S. 215 (1). Utrumque ; sc. polum. Gr. 371. 4. 2). A. & S. 
2 33 (3)- — 295. Vitiaverit = violaverit, which is the reading of 
some editors. Gr. 508. A. & S. 261, R. 1. — 296. Atlas; a high 
mountain in Africa, whose top was said to support the heavens. Cf. 
Virg. A. IV. 246. Its introduction here is an anachronism, for the 
transformation of Atlas (see IV. 657) had not yet taken place. 
Labor/at = is hard pressed. — 298. Pereunt. See on v. 295. — 

299. Chaos antiquum ; i. e. the chaotic confusion previous to the 
creation of the world. Flammis. Gr. 425. 2. 2.) A. & S. 242. — 

300. Superest. See on v. 295. Rerum summae = for the uni- 
verse ; literally, for the totality of things. Gr. 384. I. A. & S. 223. — 
303, Manibus = to the Manes ; i. e. the lower world. Gr. 391. 1. 
A. & S. 222, R. 1. For retulit, see on repulit, v. 157. — 304. Pater 
= Jupiter. Superos = the gods. Ipsum = Phoebus. — 305. 
Ferat. Gr. 509 and 533. 3. A. & S. 261. 2. — 306. Interitura; 
sc. esse. Gr. 228. A. & S. 162. 14. Summam — arcem = as- 
cending, he seeks the topmost point of heaven. — 307. Terris. 
Gr. 386. 1. A. & S. 224, N. 1. — 309. Posset. Gr. 501. 1. 
A. & S. 264. 7. So di?nitteret, next line. — 310. Coelo. Gr. 422. 2. 
A. & S. 255, R. 3 {b). — 311. Libratum . . . ab aure ; i. e. poised 
in his upraised hand before hurling it. — 312. Animaque — rotis- 
que. Gr. 425 ; 704. I. 2. A. & S. 242 ; 323. 1 (2). — 313. Igni- 
bus. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 314. Saltu. Gr. 431. A. & S. 

257. So flamma, v. 319. — 315. Jugo. Gr. 425. A. & S. 242. — 
316. Temone. Gr. 425. A. & S. 251. — 320. Tractu = train. 
Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2.-322. Cecidit. Gr. 515. III. A. & S. 
263. 2 (4). Cecidisse. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272. Videri. Gr. 552. 
A. & S. 271. — 323. Orbe = part of the earth. Gr. 422. 1. 2). 
A. & S. 254, R. 3.-324. Eridanus = the Padus, or Po. See v. 

258. Some have supposed it to be the Rhine. See on Virg. G. I. 
482. — 325. Naides = Naiades; the Naiads, or water-nymphs. 
Hesperiae = western, or Italian. The Greek poets called Italy Hes- 
peria, or the western land. See on Virg. A. I. 569. — 372. Auriga. 
Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. — 328. Tenuit. Gr. 508. A. & S. 261, R. 

I. So credimus, v. 330. Magnis is emphatic. — 329. Luctu. 
Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 331. Isse ; for ivisse — praeterisse. 
Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272.-335. Sinus. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. 

II. So pectora, v. 341. Percensuit = pererravit. Orbem. Gr. 
371. 4. 1). A. & S. 233 (3). — 337. Reperit. See on I. 157. 
Tamen = indeed. Ripa See on v. 323. — 338. Loco. Gr. 386. 
A. & S. 224. — 339. Aperto = rnido. — 340. Heliades = the 
daughters of Helios, or Phoebus, sisters of Phaethon. Inania = 



388 NOTES ON OVID. 

non profutura. Morti = mortuo. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. I. 
— 341. Munera. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. Palmis. Gr. 414. 4. 
A. & S. 247. 3. — 342. Auditurum. Gr. 573 ; 577. A. & S. 274, 
R. 6 {b). — 343. Adsternuntur = prostrate themselves upon ; 
used reflexively, like the middle voice in Greek. — 344. Luna — 
orbem ; i. e. four months had passed. — 345. More. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 249. II. — 346. Quia Gr. 187. 1. A. & S. 136, R. 2. 
Fhaethusa ; the feminine form of Phaethon. — 347. Maxima ; sc. 
natu. Gr. 168. 3. A. & S. 126, R. 1. Vellet. Gr. 518. II. 1. 
A. & S. 263, R. 2. Terrae. Gr. 424. 3. 2). A. & S. 221, R. 3 (4). 
Some critics make it a dative. Gr. 384. 2. 1). A. & S. 225. IV., 
R. 2. 348. Diriguisse. Gr. 551. III. A. & S. 273, N. 7. — 349. 
Lampetie ; from a Greek verb, meaning to shine. — 350, Tertia ; 
sc. soror. Her name was Phoebe ; or, according to some authorities, 
Aegle, or Pasiphae. Pararet. See on vellet, v. 347. — 351. Te- 
neri ; sc. dolet. See on v. 348. — 352. Ramos. Gr. 362. A. & S. 
210. —353. Ea. Gr. 371. 3. 1). A. & S. 232 (2). —356. Faciat. 
Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 260, R. 5. Trahat. Gr. 486. III. A. & S. 

260. II. Impetus = impulse. — 357. Eat. Gr. 509. A. & S. 

261. 2. So jungat. — 358. Truncis. Gr. 425. 2. 2). A. & S. 242, 
or 251. So manibus, next line. — 361. Parce = forbear. — 363. 
Novissima = the last. — 364. Stillata ; here passive. Sole. 
Gr. 414. 2. 2). A. & S. 248. II. — 365. Electra = amber. Am- 
nis; i.e. the Eridanus. — 366. Nuribus = women. Gestanda 
= to be worn ; i. e. as necklaces, bracelets, etc. — 367. Monstro 
= prodigy. See on v. 338. Proles Stheneleia = the son of 
Stheneleus. Cygnus ; or Cycnus, as often written. — 369. Mente. 
Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. I. Propior ; sc. tibi. — 370. Ligurum ; in 
the northwestern part of Italy. — 371. Imperio. Gr. 431. A. & S. 
257. — 372. Sororibus = byhis sisters; who had been transform- 
ed into trees, as just related. — 373. Viro. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, 
R. 5 (1). — 374. Dissimulant = obtegunt, celant. — 375. Junc- 
tura = a web ; i. e. the skin between the toes of the swan. — 376. 
Os ; accusative. Rostrum ; nominative. — 377. Jovi = ae'ri, as 
often. Cf. Virg. G. I. 418; II. 419, and Hor. C. I. 1. 25. — 378. Ig- 
nis =fulminis. Gr. 399. 2. 2). A. & S. 213, R. 1 (3). — 380. Colat. 
Gr. 500. 1. A. & S. 264. 5. Flammis. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 

I. — 381. Squalidus = clothed in mourning ; sorrowing. — 382. 
Decoris. See on v. 378. Deficit. Gr. 518. 3. A. & S. 263. 5. 
Deficit orbem = is eclipsed ; literally, forsakes (or, fails) the world. — 
384. Luctibus. See on v. 338. — 385. Officiumque negat = 
and refuses his service. — 387. Mini. Gr. 388. II. A. & S. 225. II. 
Laborum. Gr. 410. III. A. & S. 215. — 388. Agat. Gr. 488. 

II. A. & S. 260, R. 6. So in v. 390. — 389. Est See on tenuit, 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK III. 389 

v. 338. Posse. Gr. 545. 2. 1) A. & S. 239, R. 2. — 391. Or- 
batura patres; a bitter sarcasm. Ponat. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262, 
and R. 1. — 393. Meruisse ; sc. eum. Gr. 545. 2. 3); 453. 2. 
A. & S. 206 (4). Rexerit. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264. 1. — 395. 
Velit. Gr. 492. 3. A. & S. 262. The neve serves to connect cir- 
cumstant with rogant, and rogant with velit ; and they beg that he will 
not, etc. Rebus. See on v. 307. So precibus, v. 397. — 396. 
Voce. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 397. Regaliter = more 
regis. — 398. Terrore. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 399. Do- 
lens = propter dolorem. Stimulo et verbere. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 
2 47- 3- — 400. Natum ; i. e. mortem nati. Illis. See on v. 307. 



METAMORPHOSES. Book III. 



THE STORY OF CADMUS AND THE DRAGON, [vv. 
1 - 130.] 

1. Deus = Jupiter, who, under the disguise of a bull, had carried 
Europa, the daughter of Agenor, king of Phoenicia, from her native 
country to Crete. Imagine. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. So orbe, v. 6. 
— 2. Se; sc. esse Jovem. Dictaea = Cretan ; from the mountain 
Dicte, on which Jupiter was said to have been brought up, whence 
his surname, Dictaeus. — 3. Pater = Agenor. Ignarus ; i. e. igno- 
rant of the fate of Europa, to whom raptam refers. Cadmo = 
Cadmus, son of Agenor. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. — 4. Im- 
perat. Gr. 467. III. ; 518. 3. A. & S. 145. I. 3 ; 263. 5. Invene- 
rit is the fut. perf. — 5. Facto. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Pius ; 
i. e. in filiam. Sceleratus ; (crudelis) in filinm. — 6. Pos- 
sit Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 260, R. 5. — 8. Agenorides. Gr. 316. 
A. & S. 100. 1. — 9. Sit . . . habitanda. Gr. 229 5 525. A. & S. 
162. 15; 265. —10. Tibi. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Soils = so/t- 
tariis, desertis. — 11. Aratri. See on decoris, II. 382. — 12. Hao 
duce. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257, R. 7 (a) and {b). Carpe vias = 
take your way. Herba. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 13. 
Fac condas = See that you build. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. 
— 14. Castalio . . . antro ; i. e. the cave in Mount Parnasus which 
was the seat of the Delphic oracle, and which Ovid here calls Cas- 
talian, from the neighboring fount of that name, sacred to Apollo 
and the Muses. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 (b). — 16. Cervice. 
See on herba, v. 12. — 17. Presso = tardo. Cf. Livy, XXVIII. 
14 : Hispanos presso gradu incedere jubet. — Auctorem. Gr. 363. 



390 NOTES ON OVID. 

A. & S. 204. —19. Vada. Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 233, R. 1. Cephisi. 
See on I. 369. Panopes = of Panope, a city of Phocis. See on I. 
313. — 20. Cornibus. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 21. Mugitibus. 
Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. Impulit = set in motion, shook. — 
24. Agit grates* See on II. 152. Terrae. Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 
223. So Jovi, v. 26.-26. Ire. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 273. 2{d). 

— 27. Libandas = for a libation. Gr. 565. 3. 2). A. & S. 274, R. 7 
(a). The water for such a purpose must be taken from a running 
stream. — 28. Securi. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 30. Effici- 
ens — arcum = forming a low arch with stones joined together. 

— 31. Aquis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Antro. See on v. 16. — 
32. Martius. Some say that the dragon was the son of Mars and 
Tilphossa, the Fury ; others, that it was sacred to Mars. Cristis 
. . . et auro = cristis aureis. Gr. 704. II. 2. A. & S. 323. 2 (3). — 
35. Tyria. Tyre was a city of Phoenicia. See on v. 1. — 36. 
Gradu. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 37. Antro. See' on v. 14. 
So manibus, v. 39. — 42. Sinuatur = winds himself. See on II. 343. 

— 43. Media — parte ; sc. corporis = more than half his length. — 
44. Corpora Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. Quanto ; sc. is est 
See on II. 138. —45. Spectes. Gr. 503. III. A. & S. 261. 2. — 
Arctos. See on II. 132 and 171. — 46. Phoenicas. Gr. 98. 
A. & S. 85, Ex. 2. Parabant. Gr. 474, and 2. A. & S. 259, R. 4 (3). 

— 48. Occupat = attacks. 

51. Sit. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Sociis. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. 
Agenore. Gr. 425. 3. 1). A. & S. 246. — 52. Leoni. Gr. 385. 4. 
A. & S. 224, R. 2. — 53. Erat ; sc. ei = he had. Perro. See on 
corpore, v. 44. — 54. Telo. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256, R. 1. — 56. Cor- 
poris. Gr. 396. IV. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 57. Lingua. Gr. 414. 4. 
A. & S. 247. 3. So dextra (sc. manu), v. 59. — 60. Magnum magno. 
Gr. 596. A. & S. 279. 4. — 62. Mota forent = would have been 
moved. Gr. 297. III. 2 and foot-note ; 486. I. A. & S. 154, R. 3 ; 
261, R. 4. — 64. Repulit ; with antepenult lengthened. See on II. 
157. — 65. Quoque. Gr. 602. III. A. & S. 279. 3 (d). — 66. Cur- 
vamine. See on cervice, v. 16. — 68. Dolore. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 
247. 1 (1). — 71. Tergo. See on v. 37. Ossibus. Gr. 384. I. 
A. & S. 223. — 76 Ore. See on v. 37. Stygio. See on I. 139. — 
77, 78. Ipse — cingitur = Now he winds himself into a great coil ; 
literally, with coils making a great circle. See on II. 343. Trabe. 
See on v. 54. Exstat = extends himself. — 79. Impete ; for im- 
petu, which is not admissible before a consonant in hexameter verse. 
Gr. 133. A. & S. 94. — 81. Spolio = the skin. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 
247. 3. — 84. Perro. Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 223. — 85. Palato. 
Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 88. Dabat retro = drew 
back ; like retrahebat. Gr. 469. II. A. & S. 145. II. 1. Sedere = 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK III. 39 1 

to pierce deeply, or penetrate. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 251, R. 2. 
So ire. — 89. Cedendo. Gr. 566. I. A. & S. 275, R. 4. — 90. In 
gutture = in guttura ; the reading of some editions. 91. Eunti ; 
sc. serpenti. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 94. G-emuit ; sc. arbor. 
Sua robora; subject of flagellari. Gr. 551. III. A. & S. 273, N. 7. 
— 95. Dum — hostis = while the victor is contemplating the mag- 
nitude of his vanquished foe. On victor victi, see on v. 60. — 

97. Unde = whence (it came). The warning came from Mars (see 
on v. 32), by whom Cadmus and his wife Harmonia, or Hermione, 
were afterwards changed to serpents. Agenore. See on v. 51. — 

98. Serpens. Gr. 362. 2. 2). A. & S. 210. On tu see Gr. 367. 2. 1). 
A. & S. 209, R. 1 (b). — 100. Terrore. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 
1 (2). — 101. Fautrix. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. So incremental v. 
103, and semina, v. 105. — 102. Pallas ; or Minerva, the goddess of 
wisdom. Motae = ploughed. Gr. 579. A. & S. 274. 3 (b). Ter- 
rae. See on v. 91. — 103. Vipereos = of the serpent. Gr. 398. 2. 
A. & S. 211, R. 4 [a). — 104. Presso = held down ; pressed into 
the earth. — 105. Humi. Gr. 424. 2. A. & S. 221, R. 3. Mor- 
talia = of men. See on v. 103. — 106. Fide majus = (a wonder) 
beyond belief. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. —107. Prima. Gr. 443. 2. 
A. & S. 205, R. 15 {b). Acies = the point. —108. Tegmina 
capitum = helmets. Picto cono = with painted crest. Gr. 414. 
3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 111. Aulaea. In the Roman theatre, the 
curtain was wound round a roller under the stage, and was let down 
at the beginning, and raised at the end, of the play. Cf. Horace E. 
II. 1. 189. As it was raised, the upper part of the figures (signa) 
painted on it would appear first. — 113. Placidoque — tenore = 
drawn up with gentle and even motion. — 114. Margine ; sc. au- 
laeorum. — 115. Hoste. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 116. Cape; 
scarma.—IYJ. Nee. Gr. 538. 1. A. & S. 267, R. 1 and N. 
Bellis. See on v. 91. Civilibus = inter fratres. — 119. Ferit; 
i. e. unns, v. 116. Ipse refers to the same person, and eum which is 
to be supplied as object of dederat ; also illo. — 121. Modo = just 
now. Auras == the breath ; the life. — 122, 123. Suo Marte = 
in fight with one another. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. Subiti = 
suddenly born ; just sprung from the earth. — 124. Juventus —jtive- 
nes. — 125. Trepido — pectore = lay with palpitating breasts ; 
i.e. dying. Matrem = terra?n. Cf. terrigenis, v. 118. — 126. 
Quinque. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). — 127. Humi. See on 
v. 105. Tritonidis = Minerva. Some derive the name from Lake 
Tritonis in Libya, near which she was said to have been born ; 
others, from the stream Triton, in Boeotia, where she was worship- 
ped ; others, from rpiro), head, because, according to some traditions, 
she sprang from the head of Jupiter. — 128. Fidem = a promise, a 



392 NOTES ON OVID. 

pledge. — 129. Sidonius hospes = the Sidonian stranger ; i. e. 
Cadmus. Sidon was the chief city of Phoenicia. — 130. Quum — 
urbem = when he built the city commanded by the oracle of Phoe- 
bus. See on v. 103. 

THE STORY OF BACCHUS AND THE SAILORS, [vv. 
582-691.] Pentheus, king of Thebes, was the son of Echion and 
Agave, daughter of Cadmus. He endeavored to prevent his sub- 
jects from paying divine honors to Bacchus ; and, while the Theban 
women were celebrating the orgies of the god, he ordered his ser- 
vants to seize the pretended deity and bring him before him. They 
cannot find Bacchus, but return with Acoetes, one of his priests. 
Pentheus is enraged, and threatens to kill Acoetes, but bids him 
first tell his story ; which he does in the extract here given. 

582. Metu. Gr. 399. 5. 3). A. & S. 250. 2 (1). Mihi. Gr. 387. 
A. & S. 226 and R. 1. — 583. Maeonia = Maeonian ; usually = Ly- 
dian, but here = Tyrrhenian, or Etrurian. The Lydians are said to 
have colonized Etruria. — 584. The order in prose would be : Pater 
mihi arva non reliqtiit quae duri juvenci colerent. On colerent, see 
Gr. 500. A. & S. 264, R. 5. — 586. Lino. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 
247.3. So hamis and calamo. — 587. Ducere = to draw out. 

— 588. Illi. See on mihi, v. 582. Census _= wealth, estate. Cf. 
Hor. C. II. 15. 13. Traderet. Gr. 518. II. 1. A. & S. 263, R. 2. 

— 589. Studii = of my employment, or trade, — 591. Faternum 
= my patrimony. — 592. Haererem. Gr. 491. A. &. S. 262 and 
R. 5. Isdem = iisdem. Gr. p. 61, foot-note, and 669. II. A. & S. 
306 (1). — 593, 594. Addidici regimen . . . flectere = I learned 
also to turn the helm. Carinae = of the ship. Gr. 705. III. A. & S. 
324. 3. — 594. Oleniae Capellae = of the Olenian goat. The 
goat Amalthea, which suckled Jupiter, was rewarded by being 
placed among the stars, on the shoulder of Auriga, the Charioteer. 
It was called Olenian, from the town Olenus, in Achaia (or, as some 
say, from the town of the same name in Aetolia), near which it was 
born. Pluviale; because its rising was in the rainy season. — 595. 
Taygeten ; one of the Pleiades, " the Seven Stars " in' the constel- 
lation Taurus. They were daughters of Atlas (hence called Atlan- 
tides), and are said to have been changed into stars on account of 
their grief at the death of their sisters, the Hyades, or at the fate of 
their father. Hyadas = the Hyades, five (or seven) sisters of the 
Pleiades, forming another familiar group in the same constellation, 
placed there by Jupiter in compassion for their grief at the death of 
their brother Hyas. They are called pluviae by Virgil, A. I. 744, 
III. 516, and tristes by Horace, C. I. 3. 14. The fables concerning 
the Pleiades and the Hyades are many and various. Arcton = the 
Bear. See on II. 132 and 171, and cf. Virgil, G. I. 138. Taygeten, 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK III. 393 

Hyadas, and Arcton are Greek forms. So Delon, v. 597. — 596. 
Domos ; i. e. the quarters of the sky from which they come. Cf. 
Virgil, G. I. 371. Puppibus = ships. See on v. 593. See also 
Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. — 597. Delon = Delos ; an island 
in the Aegean Sea, one of the Cyclades (see on II. 264), famous as 
the birth-place of Apollo and Diana, and as one of the chief seats of 
their worship. It was also a great commercial centre. Chiae tel- 
luris = Chios ; one of the largest and most noted of the islands in 
the Aegean. — 598. Litora. Gr. 374. 6. A. & S. 233 (1). Re- 
mis. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 599. Do saltus = salio, as 
dedit sonitum, v. 37 = somcit. Arenae. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 
601, 602. Laticesque — admoneo = and I order my crew to 
take in fresh water. Gr. 558. VI. and 3. A. & S. 218, R. 2 ; 273. 
2 and (b). Ducat. Gr. 500. A. & S. 264. 5. Undas = the 
springs, or fountains, whence the supply was to be got. — 603. Quid 
aura promittat = what the wind may promise ; i. e. what weather 
to expect. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 607. Forma. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 608. Mero. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1 
(1). — 609. Vix = with difficulty. Cultum = dress. — 610. Pos- 
set. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264. 7. — 612. Sit. See on v. 603. — 
613. Faveas. Gr. 488. I. and 2. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Laborious. 
Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. — 614. His = to these ; i. e. the sail- 
ors who had seized him. Mitte = cease. — 615. Quo. Gr. 417. 
A. & S. 256. 2. Conscendere. Gr. 552. 3. A. & S. 270, R. 1 
(a). — 616. Ocior. Gr. 166. A. & S. 126. 1. — 617. Prorae tu- 
te\a.=proreta ; who had charge of the fore-part of the ship. — 618. 
Qui — remis = who with his voice kept time (or marked time) for 
the rowers. He is called animorum hortator, because by his 
singing he cheered them in their labor. — 621. Violari. Gr. 551. 
II. 1. A. & S. 273. 4 (a). Pinum. Cf. I. 95.-622. Mini. 
See on v. 582. Juris = of authority. — 625. Exsilium — luebat 
= was paying the penalty of exile for a dreadful murder. — 626. 
Mini Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). Pugno. Gr. 414.4. 
A. & S. 247. 3. — 627. Rupit = struck violently. Excussum ; 
sc. navi, from the ship. Misisset. Gr. 510. A. & S. 261. 1. Si 
non = nisi ; which would be required in prose. — 628. Aniens = 
senseless, stunned. 

629. Bacchus ; the son of Jupiter and Semele, and the god of 
wine, which he invented and taught men to make. — 630, 631. 
Solutus sit. Gr. 503. II. and 506. A. & S. 263. 2(1). A mero = 
from the wine ; i. e. from intoxication. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. 
— 632, 633. Quae ope = by what means. — 634. Proreus; i. e. 
Melanthus. See v. 617 and note. It is the subject of dixit. — 635. 
Velis. See on v. 603. Terra — petita = you shall be landed on 



394 NOTES ON OVID. 

the desired shore. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 636. Nax- 
on = Naxos ; an island in the Aegean, the largest of the Cyclades, 
famed for its fertility, its wines, its marble, and one of the chief seats 
of the worship of Bacchus. Cf. Virg. A. III. 125. Gr. 379. 3.2). 
A. & S. 237, R. 5 {b). Liber ; a name often given to Bacchus, 
probably from liberare, and = he who frees from care. — 637. Mihi. 
See on v. 582. Vobis. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. — 638. 
Fallaces ; sc. nautae. — 639. Sic fore = that so it shall be. Gr. 
297. III. 2; 551. I. A. & S. 154, R. 3 ; 272. Dare. Gr. 551. II. 
and 1. A. & S. 273. 2 {d). Carinae. See on v. 593. — 640. 
Dextera = on the right. Gr. 148. 3. 1). A. & S. 106. Dextra ; 
sc. manu = to the right hand. Some editors give dextra (abl.) in- 
stead of dextera. The vessel was bound from Chios to Delos (see 
v. 597), and Naxos lay to the right of its course. — 641, 642. Quis — 
tenet. The order of translation is : " Quis te furor tenet, Acoete ? " 
pro se quisqite inquit. Some read : " Quis te furor " — , inquit 
Opheltes, " Pro se quisque timet : laevam pete ! " making quis te furor 
— , an instance of aposiopesis. See Gr. 704. I. 3. A. & S. 324. 33. 
The passage is probably corrupt. Nutu. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 
3. — 643. Velit. See on v. 603. Aure = in aurem. — 644. Capi- 
atque . . . dixi = et dixi : Capiat, etc. Gr. 488. I. A. & S. 260, 
R. 6. Aliquis = some one else. — 645. Ministerio. Gr. 425. 2. 
2). A. & S. 251. Artis = the fraud; but some consider it = my 
office. Cf. Virgil, A. II. 106. — 647. Scilicet = forsooth ; marking 
the irony. Gr. 705. IV. A. & S. 324. 4.-649. Naxo. Gr. 431. 
A. & S. 257. Petit diversa (sc. loca) etc. = he steers in a differ- 
ent direction, leaving Naxos ; i. e. the way to Naxos. — 651. Sen- 
serit. Gr. 503. II. ; 506. A. & S. 263. 2(1). — 653. Mihi. Gr. 388. 
3. A. & S. 225. II. — 655. Fallitis. Gr. 508. A. & S. 261, R. 1. — 
656. Lacrimas. Gr. 371. 3. 1). A. & S. 232 (2) and N. 1. — 
658. Per. The separation of the preposition from the accusative is 
very common in oaths. Praesentior = more present ; i. e. of more 
immediate power, either to reward or punish. Cf. Virg. E. I. 42. 
Illo. See on quo, v. 615. — 659, 660. Tarn — fide = that I am 
telling you things as true as they are incredible ; or, as they surpass 
what one would believe to be true. Aequore. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A.& S. 
254, R. 3. — 661. Siccum navale = a dry dock. The ships of 
the ancients, when not in use, were drawn up on shore. Teneret. 
Gr. 503. II.; 506. A. & S. 263. 2 (1). — 663. Deducunt = draw 
down (from the antennae, or yards), i. e. spread them to the wind. 
Geminaque ope ; i. e. with both oars and sails. — 664. The ivy 
(which was sacred to Bacchus) impedes the oars by twining about 
them. — 665. Distringunt = stretch ; i. e. weigh down ; or, as 
some editors translate it, occupy, fill. Corymbis. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK IV. 395 

247. 3. — 666. Frontem. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. So curva- 
mina, v. 672. — 667. Hastam; i. e. the thyrsus, a staff twined with 
ivy and vine leaves, which Bacchus is generally represented as bear- 
ing. Cf. XI. 7, 28. — 668. The animals named were sacred to Bacchus. 
Simulacra inania= empty images, or phantoms. — 669. Pictarum 
= spotted. — 672. Depresso = flattened (into a fish) ; or, as some 
translate it, bowed down ; i. e. no longer erect in human form. — 
674. Loquenti; sc. ez — while he was speaking. Gr. 387. A. & S. 
226. — 676. Obstantes. Cf. v. 664. — 678. Manus. Gr. 362. 3. 
1). A. & S. 210 (£). So pinnos. Esse. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272. 
Vocari. Gr. 552. 1. A. & S. 271. — 681. Corpore. Gr. 414. 3. 
A. & S. 247. 2. Novissima = extrema. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, 
R. 17. — 682. Sinuantur = are curved. — 683. Dant saltus. 
See on v. 599. — 685. Inque — speciem = and sport like a com- 
pany of dancers. Cf. Virg. A. V. 594. — 686. Naribus efflant = 
spout from their nostrils. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 242. — 688, 689. 
Pavidum ; sc. me. Corpore. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Vixque 
meum = and scarcely myself. — 690. Corde. See on v. 686. 
Tene = hold your course towards ; steer for. Diam ; an old name 
of Naxos. — 691. Sacris. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. 



METAMORPHOSES. Book IV. 

THE STORY OF PYRAMUS AND THISBE. [vv. 55-166.] 
This story is found in no other ancient writer whose works have come 
down to us. 

56. Puellis. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 58. Coctilibus = of 
brick. Semiramis ; a queen of Assyria, who built Babylon (urbem) 
with all its wonders. The legends concerning her and Ninus, her 
husband, whom she succeeded as sovereign (according to some of 
the myths, she murdered him), are various and conflicting. — 59. 
Gradus ; sc. amoris. 60. Tempore. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. 
Taedae — coissent = they would have been united in marriage. 
Torches were borne before the bride on her way to the house of the 
bridegroom ; hence taeda is often used, by metonymy, for marriage. 
Cf. Virg. A. IV. 339. See Gr. 512. A. & S. 261, R. 4. Here the 
condition is implied in Sed — patres. — 61. Quod. Gr. 445. 7. 
A. & S. 206. (13) {a). — 62. Ex aequo = equally. Captis = cap- 
tivated. — 63. Conscius ; used substantively. — 64. Quoque 
magis = and the more. The correlative eo is to be supplied with 
the second magis. — 65. Quam duxerat = which it had got ; had 



396 NOTES ON OVID. 

come to have. — 66. Quum fieret — when it was built. Gr.518. II. 
1. A. & S. 263, R. 2. Domui. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. — 67. 
Nulli ; for nemini-= by no one. Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 225. II. — 68. 
Primi. See on prima, I. 89. For the gender, see Gf. 439. 2. 1). 
A. & S. 205, R. 2 (1), where the principle is explained. — 70. Mur- 
mure. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 74. Quantum erat = how 
much it would be ; i. e. how little it would be. Gr. 705. IV. A. & S. 
324. 4. On erat, see Gr. 475. 4. A. & S. 259, R. 3 and (d). Si- 
neres. Gr. 516. II. and 1. A. & S. 262, R. 2. So pateres, next line. 
Corpore. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 75. Danda. Gr. 562 ; 
565. 1. A. & S. 275. II. and R. 3. — 77. Quod. Gr. 554. IV. ; 558. 
A. & S. 273. 5. Verbis. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. So parti, v. 79. 

— 78. Diversa sede ; i. e. on opposite sides of the wall. — 79. 
Dedere. Gr. 461 and 3. A. & S. 209, R. 11 (4). — 81. Ignes; 
i. e. the stars. — 84. Nocte. Gr. 426. A. & S. 253. — 85. Ten- 
tent. Gr. 491 ; 480 ; 558. II. 1. A. & S. 262 ; 258. I.; 273. 1, N. I. 
On foribus, see Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 {b). — 86. Domo. Gr. 
424. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 1. Exierint. Gr. 518. II. A. & S. 263. 5 
and R. 1. — 87. Neve — arvo = and lest they should miss each 
other while wandering in the broad fields. Sit errandum. Gr. 301. 
2 ; 388. I.; 491. A. & S. 184. 3 ; 262 and R. 5. Arvo. Gr. 422. 

1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 88. Conveniant and lateant are in 
the same construction as tentent and relinquant. Nini. See on v. 
58. His tomb, built by Semiramis, was large and magnificent. — 89. 
Pomis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — Fonti. See on domui, v. 66. 

— 91. Lux = the sun. — 92. Aquis. Gr. 384 and 2. 1). A. & S. 
225. IV. and R. 2. Cf. II. 68. Isdem. See on III. 592. Cf. Virg. 
A. II. 250. — 93. Cardine. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. Cf. Virg. A. 
III. 448. — 94. Suos = her friends. Gr. 441. 1. A. & S. 205, R. 7. 
Vultum. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. So rictus, v. 97. — 96. Au- 
dacem ; sc. earn. — 97. Caede == sanguine. Oblita ; (i short) from 
oblinere. Gr. 651. 3 ; 654. A. & S. 284, Ex. 1 (2) (a) ; 285. 1. — 98. 
Depositura. Gr. 578. V. A. & S. 274, R. 6 (a). Sitim. Gr. 85. III. 

2. A. & S. 79 {b) 2. — 101. Dumque fugit. Gr. 467. 4. A. & S. 
259. 1 (c). Tergo. See on foribus, v. 85. — 103. Dum redit. 
See on v. 101. Sine ipsa = without herself; i. e. Thisbe. — 106. 
Ore. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 109. Vita. Gr. 419. IV. A. & S. 
244. — 110. Nostra — est = I am guilty. — 111. Venires. Gr. 
492. 2 ; 493. 2. A. & S. 262 and R. 4. — 112. Prior. Gr. 443. 2. 
A. & S. 205, R. 15 (b). —115. Timidi. Gr. 401 ; 402. I. A. & S. 
211, R. 8 (3) and {a). Optare. Gr. 549 and 1. A. & S. 269, R. 2. 
— 118. Haustus is a noun, object of accipe. — 119. Quoque = 
et quo ; referring to ferrum. — 121. Humi. Gr. 424. 2. A. & S. 
221, R. 3. — 122 - 124. Fistula = a water-pipe ; which bursts (scin- 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK IV. 397 

ditur) from a defect in the lead (vitiato plumbo) of which it is 
made. Longas aquas = a stream of water. — 125. Arborei 
fetus = the fruit of the tree. Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 211, R. 4 {a). 
Caedis. See on v. 97. — 128. Ne fallat = that she may not dis- 
appoint. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262 and R. 5. — 130. Vitarit. Gr. 525. 
A. & S. 265. So sit, v. 132. Narrare. Gr. 552. 1. A. & S. 271. — 
131. In arbore is not precisely the same as arboris. What she re- 
cognizes in the tree is its form, not the color of its fruit. — 132. In- 
certam ; sc. Mam, referring to Thisbe. Haeret — sit = she is 
doubtful whether this is the tree. — 133, 134. Tremebunda — 
solum = she sees the quivering body lying on the bloody earth. Gr. 
551. I. 1. A. & S. 272 and R. 5. Buxo. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. 
— 135. Instar. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). — 136. Summum = 
its surface. — 137. Suos amores = her lover. — 138. Indignos ; 
i. e. not deserving such treatment. Claro plangore = with loud 
blows. — 139. Comas. See on vultum, v. 94. — 140. Cruori. Gr. 

385. 5. A. & S. 224, R. 3. —142. Mini. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, 
R. 2. — 145. Thisbes. Gr. 43. A. & S. 44. Morte. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 247. 1. —147. Ense. Gr. 399. 5. 3). A. & S. 250. 2 (1). — 
148. Ebur = the ivory scabbard. — 149. Mini. Gr. 387. A. & S. 
226. In unum hoc = for this one deed ; i. e. for death. — 150. 
Est ; sc. mihi. Hie — vires = This (i. e. love) will give me strength 
for the death-blow ; literally, for wounds. — 154. Hoc . . . estote 
rogati = but grant this; literally, be ye entreated this. Gr. 374. 1. 
A. & S. 234. I. — 155. Meus illiusque = mine and his ; referring 
to parentes. Gr. 398. 3 ; 369. 2 (or it may be explained by 185). 
A. & S. 211, R. 3 {b). ; 105, R 3. — 156, 157. Ut . . . non invi- 
deatis = not to refuse. Gr. 493. 1. A. & S. 262, R. 5, fine print. 
Novissima = the last. Componi. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 273. 4(a). 
Tumulo. See on arvo, v. 87. — 162. Mucrone. Gr. 431. A. & S. 
257. Imum. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. — 163. Ferro. Gr. 

386. A. & S. 224. So rogis, v. 166. — 166. Quodque — rogis = 
and (their ashes) which remained from the funeral pile. 

THE STORY OF PERSEUS [vv. 604 - 789]. — This story fol- 
lows that of the transformation of Cadmus and his wife Hermione 
into serpents, which had taken place in fulfilment of the prediction 
uttered by Mars when Cadmus killed the dragon sacred to that god. 
See III. 98. 

604. Ambobus ; i. e. Cadmus and Hermione, or Harmonia. 
Formae. Gr. 396. II. A. & S. 211 and R. 2. — 605. Nepos; i. e; 
Bacchus, whose mother, Semele, was the daughter of Cadmus. — 
606. India. In the course of his wanderings in Asia, Bacchus is 
said to have conquered India. Achaia ; a part of Greece, here put 
for the whole. — 607, 608. Abantiades . . . Acrisius = Acrisius, 



398 NOTES ON OVID. 

the son of Abas ; descended from Belus, the twin brother of Agenor, 
the father of Cadmus : hence, ab origine cretus eadem. — Moe- 
nibus. Gr. 425. 2. 2). A. & S. 251. Arceat. Gr. 501. II. A. &S. 
264. 10. — 609. Argolicae. Acrisius was king of Argos, or Argolis, 
a district of Peloponnesus. The city Argos was its capital. — 610. 
Deum is genitive plural, limiting genus. Gr. 45. 5. 4). A. & S. 53. 
Jovis ; sc. gemcs, or Jilhim. — 611. Persea = Perseus ; the son of 
Jupiter, by Danae, the daughter of Acrisius. Warned by an oracle 
that his grandson would kill him, Acrisius shut Danae up in a brazen 
tower ; but Jupiter entered it in the form of a shower of gold. After 
the birth of Perseus, he and his mother were exposed in an ark, which 
floated to Seriphos, where it was found by a fisherman, who carried 
the mother and child to Polydectes, king of the island. Perseus 
grew up to manhood and performed many wonderful exploits, some 
of which are here related. In the course of his adventures, he came to 
Larissa, and at the public games, accidentally killed an old man, who 
proved to be his grandfather Acrisius. — 612. Praesentia = the 
power. Cf. III. 658. — 613. Violasse. See on I. 151. So agnosse. 
Nepotem = divinam nepotis originem. — 614. Poenitet. Gr. 556. 1. 
A. & S. 215, R. (middle). Alter = Bacchus. At alter = Perseus. 
— 615. Monstri = Medusa, the Gorgon. See vv. 769 - 789. — 616. 
Tenerum = tenuem, which is the more common epithet. Alis ; i. e. 
the wings which Mercury had lent him. See v. 665. — 617. Liby- 
cas. See on II. 235. Penderet. Gr. 518. 1. A. & S. 263, R. 2. — 
619. Animavit in angues = animavit etformavit in angues. — 620. 
Infesta colubris ; a form of expression admissible in prose also. 
Cf. Sallust (Jugurtha, 89), infesta serpentibus. Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 
250. 2. — 621. Immensum = coelum. Cf. inane, v. 718 ; alto, v. 
788, etc. — 622. Exemplo = like. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 
624. Orbem. Gr. 371. 4 2). A. & S. 233 (3). — 625. Arctos. 
See on II. 132 and 171. Cancri. See on II. 83. — 628. Hesperio ... 
orbe = in the western part of the world. Regnis. Gr. 363. A. & S. 
204. — 629. Lucifer. Cf. II. 115. — 630. Evocet. Gr. 522. II. 
A. & S. 263. 4. Aurora ; sc. evocet. See on II. 1 13. Diurnos ; 
i. e. of the sun. 

631. Hominum. Gr. 396. III. 2. 3) (4). A. & S. 212, R. 2, N. 
6. Cunctos. Some editions have ctmctis. Praestare, to excel, 
takes the accusative or the dative, in both prose and poetry. The 
dative is the more common in Ovid. Corpore. Gr. 429. A. & S. 
250. 1. — 632. Japetionides ; a Greek form of the patronymic. 
Atlas was the son of Japetus, and king of Mauritania. Ultima 
= the farthest to the west. — 634. Cf. II. 68. Equis. Gr. 386 and 1. 
A. & S. 224 and N. 1. Axes = currum. — 635. Illi = of his. Gr. 
398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). Cf. Virg. G. 1. 14, 15. — 636. Preme- 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK IV. 399 

bant = limited. Humum = his lands. — 637. Auro. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 247. 1. — 638. The golden apples of the Hesperides (see on 
XI. 144) are here made the property of Atlas himself. — 640. Mini. 
See on v. 635. — 641. Rerum ; sc. gestarttm. — 643. Themis. See 
on I. 321. — 644. Auro. Gr. 425. A. & S. 251. —645. Titulum = 
honor. Praedae. Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 223. Jove natus ; not Per- 
seus, but Hercules, who killed the dragon and stole the apples. — 647. 
Moenibus. Gr. 414. 4 A. & S. 247. 3. Servanda. Gr. 565. 3. 
2). A. & S. 274, R. 7 (a). — 650. Mentiris = you falsely claim. 
Longe tibi absit = be far from protecting you. Gr. 491. A. & S. 
262 and R. 5. — 652. Dictis. Gr. 385. 5. A. & S. 223, R. 2. — 
653. Viribus. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Atlanti. Gr. 391. 1 
and 2. 4) (2). A. & S. 222, R. 1 and R. 2 (a) and {b). — 654. Parvi. 
Gr. 402. III. 1. A. & S. 214, R. 1 {a) (1). Gratia = friendship. — 
655. Munus. Gr. 705. IV. A. & S. 324 4 — 656. Retro — 
versus = turning his face aside ; that he might not himself be 
changed to stone. Squalentia. = /lorrida ; i. e. bristling with ser- 
pents. — 657. Abeunt = mutanhcr. Compare the description of 
Atlas, Virg. A. IV. 246-251. — 659. Summo. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 
205, R. 17. — 662. The ancients believed that Atlas supported the 
heavens on his head, or his shoulders. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 247. 

663. Hippotades = Aeolus, the son, or, as some say, the grand- 
son of Hippotes, a king of Troy. He was king of the winds. Cf. 
Virg. A. I. 52 foil. — 664. Admonitor operum = who calls men 
to the labors of the day. Cf. v. 629. — 665. Ille = Perseus. Pen- 
nis is here the dative the poetical construction for pennas alligat pedi- 
bns. Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 223. — 666. Telo = the harpe, or short 
curved sword, which Mercury had given him. Cf. v. 727. — 667. Ta- 
laribus = the winged sandals of Mercury. See on v. 616, and cf 
Virg. A. IV. 239. — 669. Cepheaque = of Cepheus, a king of Aethi- 
opia. It is from Cepheus. The more common form is Cepheia, which 
is found in some MSS. — 670. Maternae = of her mother, Cassi- 
ope, Cassiopea, or Cassiepea, who, by boasting of her beauty, had 
offended the Nereids. They, in revenge, had induced Neptune to 
inundate the territories of Cepheus ; and, to appease them, the or- 
acle of Ammon had directed that Andromeda should be bound to a 
rock and exposed to a sea-monster. Cepheus, Cassiope, and Andro- 
meda were afterwards placed among the stars. Milton, in II Pen- 
seroso, speaks of Cassiope as 

that starred Ethiop queen, that strove 

To set her beauty's praise above 

The sea-nymphs, and their powers offended. 

671. Amnion, or Hammon, was an Ethiopian deity whom the 
Greeks and Romans identified with Zeus, or Jupiter. He had a 



400 NOTES ON OVID. 

famous temple and oracle in the oasis of Ammonium (now Siwah) in 
the Libyan desert. See on Virg. A. IV. 198. — 672. Simul = simul 
ac, as often. Brachia. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 673. Abantia- 
des = Perseus. See on v. 607. — 674. Moverat. Gr. 511. A. & S. 
261, R. 6. (Cf. 259, N.) — 675. Trahit . . . ignes = he is enamored. 

— 676. Correptus = charmed, fascinated. — 678. Catenis. Gr. 
419. IV. A. & S. 244.. — 679. Quibus ; sc. catenis. Gr. 414. 4. 
A. & S. 247. 3. — 680. Requirenti; sc. mihi. Terrae = patriae 
tuae. — 681. Geras. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 683. Celasset. 
See on I. 152. Gr. 510. A. & S. 261. 1. — 684. Quod potuit = 
which she could do ; i. e. though she could not cover her face. — 685. 
Instanti; i. e. Perseus. Fateri. Gr. 552. 1. A. & S. 271, R. 4. — 
686. Nolle. Gr. 549. 4. 1). A. & S. 272, R. 6. Videretur. Gr. 
491. A. & S. 262 and R. 5. — 687. Quantaque — formae = 
" how much her mother had presumed upon her beauty." See on v. 
681. — 689. Ponto. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 (£).— 690. 
J?OBsid.et = premzt, tenet. — 692. Ambo miseri. Gr. 439. 2. 1). 
A. & S. 205, R. 2 (1). Justius = with the greater reason ; since she 
had been the cause of the calamity. — 693. Tempore. See on v. 
678. — 696. Opem . . . ferendam. Gr. 562 ; 565 and 1. A. & S. 
275. II. and R. 3. — 697. Hanc ; i. e. Andromeda. Peterem. Gr. 
510. A.&S. 261. 1. Ilia; i.e. Danae. See on v. 611. — 699. Gor- 
gonis. See on v. 615. Alia. See on v. 616. — 701. Praeferrer 

— gener = I ought surely to be preferred to all (others) as a son-in- 
law. — 702. Dotibus; referring to his heroism and his renown. 
Faveant. Gr. 505. A. & S. 263. 2 (1). — 703. Ut — paciscor 
= I stipulate that she shall be mine, if saved by my valor. Gr. 578. 
III. A. & S. 274. 3 (a). — 704. Dubitaret. Gr. 486. II. A.&S. 
260, R. 5. — 705. Super = insuper. Dotale = as a dowry. 

707. Juvenum ; i. e. the rowers. — 708. Sic fera = so does the 
monster (plough the waters). Undis. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 709, 
710. Tantum — coeli = It was as far from the rocks as the dis- 
tance in mid-air (quantum medii coeli), which a Balearic sling can 
traverse with its whirled bullet. The inhabitants of the Balearic 
islands were famous as slingers. Leaden balls were sometimes used 
for slinging. — 711. Tellure. See on undis, v. 708. — 712. Ardu- 
us . . . abiit = soared aloft. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a) 
and {b). Summo. See on v. 659. — 714. Jovis praepes = the 
eagle of Jove. Vacuo = aperto. — 715. Phoebo = to the sun ; i. e. 
basking in the sunshine. — 716. Occupat aversum = comes upon 
him from behind. Neu = and that (he may) not. Retorqueat. 
Gr. 491. A. & S. 262. — 717. Cervicibus; poetic plural and ab- 
lative = in cervice. — 718. Inane. See on v. 621. Volatu. Gr. 
414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 720. Inachides = Perseus ; because he 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK IV. 40I 

was born at Argos, Inachos was the first king and most ancient hero 
of Argos. — 721. Sublimis. See on arduus, v. 712. — 722. Sub- 
dit ; sc se = dives beneath. So versat. Aquis. See on equis, v. 634. 

— 725. Patent = are exposed ; i. e. terga, costae, cauda. — 727. Ense. 
See on v. 666. — 729. Graves ; " by anticipation," since it expresses 
the result of adspergine. Pennae ; i. e. of Perseus. — 730. Bibu- 
lis == wet, dripping. Talaribus. See on v. 665. — 731. Summo 
vertice = with its topmost point. Gr. 414- 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 
732. Stantibus — moto = rises above the waters when they are 
still, is covered by the sea when disturbed. On aqilis, see on v. 689. 

— 733. Eo = thither ; i. e. to the rock. — 734. Repetita = struck 
again and again. Cf. V. 473. — 735. Cum plausu clamor = 
platcsus et clamor. Cf. I. 319, and Virg. A. I. 292. — 736. Gene- 
rum; sc eum. Gr. 373. 1 and 2. A. & S. 230. So auxilium (sc. 
eum esse) and servatorem. Cf. Gr. 551. I. A. & S. 272 and 230, 
R. 1. — 738. Catenis. Gr. 425. 2. 2). A. & S. 251. — 739. Pre- 
tium and causa. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. — 741. Laedat. Gr. 
491. A. & S. 262. — 743. Phorcynidos = daughter of Phorcys ; 
a sea-god, the father of the Gorgons, the Graeae, the Hesperian 
dragon, and Scylla. See on v. 774. — 744. Recens = just broken off. 
Bibula . . . medulla = the porous pith. — 745. Rapuit expresses 
the suddenness of the transformation. Hujus, in a construction like 
this, is very rarely found without a noun. — 746. Ramis. Gr. 429. 
A. & S. 250. 1. — 749. Iterant j aetata =>r&wtf et iterant = they 
throw again and again, scatter, sow. Gr. 579. A. & S. 274. 3 (b). — 
750. Curaliis. Gr. 384. I. A. & S. 223. — 751. Tacto . . . ab 
aere = from the contact of the air. Capiant. Gr. 494. A. & S. 
262. So fiat 

753. Dis — ponit = to three gods he erects as many altars of 
turf : to Mercury, who had loaned him the talaria, the sword, and a 
helmet ; to Pallas, who had furnished him with a shield ; and to 
Jupiter, his father. — 754. Virgo = Pallas, or Minerva, goddess of 
war as well as of wisdom. — 756. Alipedi; i. e. Mercury, from the 
talaria. Deorum. Gr. 396. III. 2. 3) (2). A. & S. 212, R. 2 (3). — 
757. Et . . . praemia = even the reward ; in apposition with An- 
dromeden. — 758. Indotata = without a dowry ; i. e. without 
thought of the dowry that had been promised. See v. 705. Like 
rapit, it expresses the eagerness of Perseus to make her his own. 
Hymenaeus = Hymen, the god of marriage. He is generally rep- 
resented as a youth, bearing the nuptial torch. Amor = Cupid. — 
759. Praecutiunt. Torches were carried before the bride as she 
was led to the house of her husband. — 762. Argumenta. Gr. 363. 
A. & S. 204. — 764. Cephenum = of the Ethiopians ; the people 
of Cepheus. See on v. 669. Convivia. Gr. 371. 4. 1). A. & S. 



402 NOTES ON OVID. 

2 33 (3)-— 7 65. Epulis. Gr.419. I. A. & S. 245. 1. Munere;i.e. 
with wine. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 766. Diffudere = cheered, 
exhilarated. Cultusque — locorum = the mode of life and the his- 
tory of the country ; i. e. of the people of the country. — 768. Lyn- 
cides ; in apposition with unus = quidam. — 769. Simul = simul 
ac. —770. Perseu. Gr. 94. 1. A. & S. 81, R. — 771. Abstuleris. 
Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Crinita — ora = the head (of Medusa) 
bristling with serpents. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 772. Age- 
norides. Most of the editors speak of Agenor as the great-grand- 
father of Perseus ; but according to the best authorities, Perseus was 
descended from Belus, the twin-brother of Agenor. His mother, Danae, 
was the daughter of Acrisius, the son of Abas, the son of Lynceus and 
Hypermnestra, the former of whom was the son of Aegyptus, the latter 
the daughter of Danaus ; and Aegyptus and Danaus were twin sons of 
Belus. See on v. 607. Some read A bantiades instead of Agenorides ; 
some think the inaccuracy a slip of the pen which Ovid would have 
corrected, had he revised the poem. See Life. Perhaps gelido 
sub Atlante is another slip of the kind. Atlas had been changed to 
stone before this time, it is true, but so recently that Perseus would 
hardly speak of him as a well-known mountain, especially in relating 
events that had taken place previous to his transformation. — 773. 
Molis ; i. e. of mountains. — 774, 775. Geminas — Fhorcidas 
= the Graeae, daughters of Phorcys (see on v. 743), who had gray 
hair from their birth, and only one tooth and one eye in common, 
which they used by turns. There were three of them, but Ovid here 
speaks of but two. 776. Dum traditur = while it is passing ; i. e. 
as one is handing it to the other. — 777. Supposita . . . manu ; i. e. 
by putting his hand in the place of that of the sister who was about 
to take the eye. Perseus refused to return the eye until the Graeae 
told him how to find the Gorgons. Cepisse and the other infinitives 
in the passage depend on narrat, v. 772. Gr. 551. 1. A. & S. 272. — 

779. Gorgoneas — domos = he reached the home of the Gorgons ; 
three frightful beings, with snaky hair, brazen claws, and enormous 
teeth. Of the three, Medusa alone was mortal. See on v. 743. — 

780. The last syllable of the verse is cut off by synaloepha. Gr. 
669. I. A. & S. 307. 3. — 781. Ex ipsis ; i. e. from their natural 
state. — 782. Clypei limits aere ; the brass of the shield, i. e. the 
brazen shield. — 783. Repercusso = reflecting ; as if repercutienti. 
— 786. Pegason = Pegasus ; a winged horse, the offspring of Me- 
dusa. In modern times he has become famous as the horse of the 
Muses ; but with the ancients he had no connection with the Muses 
except producing with his hoof the inspiring fountain Hippo crene. 
His brother was Chrysaor. For the form Pegason, see Gr. 46. 1. 
A. & S. 54. — 788. Freta = waters, seas. Alto. See on v. 621. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK V. 403 



METAMORPHOSES. Book V. 

THE STORY OF CERES AND PROSERPINA. —A hymn 
in honor of Ceres, which the Muse Calliope sings in a contest with 
the Pierides, the nine daughters of Pierus, king of Emathia. The 
Muses themselves are often called Pierides, from Pieria, near Mount 
Olympus, where they were first worshipped by the Thracians. 

341. Prima. See on I. 89. Ceres, the Greek Demeter, was the 
goddess of the earth and the protectress of agriculture. She was 
the daughter of Saturn (Chronos) and Rhea. See on I. 123, and cf. 
Virg. G. I. 147. — 342. Mitia = culta, cultivated, in distinction from 
that which grows spontaneously. Cf. I. 103. — 343. Leges ; since 
agriculture is the basis of civilization. Hence she is called legifera. 
Cf. Virg. A. IV. 58. — 344. Mihi. Gr. 388. I. A. & S. 225. III. Modo 
= only. Possem. Gr. 488. I. and 1. A. & S. 263. 1. — 345. Dea 
and carmine. See on IV. 678. — 346. Giganteis. Here the giant 
Typhoeus is represented as buried under Mount Aetna. Homer and 
Virgil (A. III. 578) put Enceladus there. Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 211, 
R. 4 (a). — 347. Trinacris (or Trinacria) = Sicily, so called from 
its three promontories. — 348. Aetherias — sedes = Typhoeus, 
who dared to aspire to the celestial abodes ; referring to the revolt 
of the giants against the gods. On ausum, see Gr. 577. A. & S. 
274. 3 (a). —349. Resurgere. Gr. 553. V. A. & S. 273. 2 (b). — 
350. Peloro = Pelorum, or Pelorus (now Capo di Faro), the pro- 
montory opposite Italy ; hence Ausonian. — 351. Pachyne, the 
southern promontory, now Capo di Passaro. Tibi ; sc. subjecta est. 
Lilybaeo = Lilybaeum, now Capo di Boco or di Marsala, on the 
western coast. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 248. II. — 353. Ore. Gr. 422. 2. 
A. & S. 255, R. 3 {b). So corpore, v. 355, and sede, v. 359. — 356. 
Rex . . . silentum = Pluto. Silentium is inadmissible in hexameter 
verse. — 357. Pateat = patescat. Gr. 492. 4 and 1). A. & S. 262 
and R. 7. So retegatur and terreat. — 358. Trepidantes ; " by 
anticipation." See on IV. 729. — 361. Ambibat. Gr. 295. 3. 
A. & S. 182, R. 3. Pundamina. Gr. 371. 4. A. & S. 233. — 362. 
Exploratum est. Gr. 556. I. (1). A. & S. 209 (5). — Labare. Gr. 
549 and 1. A. & S. 269 (b). — 363. Erycina = Venus, who had a 
temple on Mount Eryx, in the northern part of Sicily. Cf. Virg. A. 
V- 759- — 365. Arma, manus, and potentia are in apposition with 
nate. Ovid had in mind Virg. A. I. 664. — 368. In the division 
of the universe among themselves, the first lot fell to Jupiter, the 
second to Neptune, the third (novissima) to Pluto. See on I. 113. 
— 370. Ipsum = Neptune. — 371. Tartara — cessant — why do 



404 NOTES ON OVID. 

the infernal regions delay (to yield to your power ) ? Tuum. Gr. 
398. 3. A. & S. 211, R. 3 (&). — 372. Profers = extend. Agitur = 
is at stake. — 373. Quae — est = " such is now our tameness." 
Gr. 453. 4. A. & S. 206 (18). — 374. Mecum = meis cum viribus = 
as mine is. — 375. Pallas and Diana had made vows of perpetual 
virginity. — 376. Abscessisse mini = have withdrawn from me. 
Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 1 {a). Filia = Proserpina. Virgo. Gr. 
362. A. & S. 210. — 377. Erit = manebit Nam — easdem = for 
she cherishes the same hopes ; i. e. as Pallas and Diana. — 378. Pro 

— regno = if you have any regard for our common kingdom. On 
tibi, see Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. — 379. Patruo = to her uncle, 
Pluto. Proserpina was the daughter of Jupiter. — 380. Solvit === 
opens. Arbitrio. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 249. II. — 381. Sed = 
(one only) but (the sharpest). Qua. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. —382. 
Nee minus — arcum = nor surer, nor more obedient to the bow. 
On audiat, see Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264. 7. — 383. Cornum ; sec- 
ond decl. neut. — 384. Hamata . . . arundine = with the barbed 
arrow. Ditem = Dis, a name of Pluto. 

385. Hennaeis . . . moenibus = the city Henna, or Enna, in 
the centre of Sicily, famous for a temple of Ceres. — 386. Aquae 
limits lacus. Nomine. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Illo ; sc. lacu. 
Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. Caystros. See on II. 252. — 389. Ut 
velo = as with an awning, or canopy. Phoebeos . . . ignes = 
the rays of the sun. — 391. Luco. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 
3. — 393. Studio. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 394. Aequales 
= her companions. Legendo = in gathering (the flowers). Gr. 
566. I. A. & S. 275, R. 4. — 395. Diti. Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 225. 
II. — 396. Usque — amor = so impatient is his love. — 397. 
Matrem. Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 232 (2). — 398. Summa . . . ab 
ora = from the upper border. — 400. Annis. Gr. 3 86. A. & S. 224. 

— 401. Virgineum. Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 211, R. 4 {a).— 402. 
Nomine. Gr. 414 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 404. Ferrugine. Every- 
thing in the lower world was represented as of a dark color. Cf. v. 
360, and Virg. A. VI. 303. — 406. Palicorum = of the Palici; 
Sicilian gods, twin sons of Jupiter (some say of Vulcan), worshipped 
near the city Palice, where were the lake and sulphurous springs here 
alluded to. Ferventia = boiling forth. Terra. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. 

— 407. Bacchiadae ; the descendants of Bacchis, king of Corinth. 
Having been banished from that city, a part of them took refuge 
in Sicily, where they founded Syracuse. Bimari ; so called be- 
cause situated on the isthmus between the Corinthian and Saronic 
gulfs. Cf. Hor. C. I. 7. 2. Corintho. Gr. 425. 3. 1). A. & S. 246. 

— 408. Portus. Syracuse had two harbors, the Portits Magnus, 
still called Porto Maggiore, and the Portus Minor, or Laccius. — 409. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK V. 405 

Medium. This adjective may take a partitive genitive plural, or, 
as here, two genitives singular, equivalent to a plural ; midway of 
(the two places) Cyane and Arethusa. These are two fountains near 
Syracuse. On Pisaeae, see v. 493 foil. The final syllable of the 
word is not elided. — 410. Quod — cornibus = which flows in a 
narrow channel, shut in by close promontories ; referring to the 
strait between Sicily and Ortygia, a small island on which Syracuse 
was partly built. — 413. Gurgite. See on terra, v. 406. Sumnia. 
See on IV. 659. Alvo. Gr. 47. 2. 2). A. & S. 49. 1. — 414. Deam 
= Proserpina. Nee — inquit = et inquit, " Non lo?tgius ibitis." — 
415. Roganda = she should have been asked for; i. e. of her 
mother. Gr. 229. A. & S. 162. 15. — 416. Magnis. Gr. 386. 1. 
A. & S. 224 — 417. Anapis ; the god of the Anapis, a river near 
Syracuse. — 418. Exorata = wooed. Exterrita = frightened (in- 
to yielding to his suit). — 420. Saturnius = Pluto, as the son of 
Saturn. — 421. In ima = into the depths of the spring ; i. e. cf 
Cyane. Gr. 396. III. 2. 3 (3). A. & S. 205, R. 9, and 212, R. 3. 
N. 4. — Coutortum. Gr. 579. A. & S. 274. 3 {b). — 424. Medio 
cratere = in the midst of the chasm ; i. e. the opening made by the 
stroke of the sceptre. — 429. Extenuatur = is dissolved, melts 
away. Videres. Gr. 485. A. & S. 260. II. R. 2. — 430. Pati 
flexus = become flexible. Posuisse. Gr. 542. 2. A. & S. 268, 
R 2. — 431. De tota (sc. ilia) = of her whole body. Tenuissima 
quaeque = whatever was most slender. — 432. Crines, etc. are in 
apposition with quaeque. — 433. Membris. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. 
Exilibus = slender. See on v. 431. — 435. Abeunt See on IV. 
658. — 436. Vitiatas ; i. e. having lost their natural constitution. — 
437. Possis. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264 7. 

438. Matri. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. —439. Profundo ; 
sc. ynari. Cf. II. 267. Gr. 422. I. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. So terris. 

— 440. Udis ; because rising from the sea. — 441. Hesperus = 
the evening star. — 442. Pinus = torches of pine. — 444. Hebeta- 
rat = had dimmed. — 446. Sitim. Gr. 85. A. & S. 79. 2. Ora . . . 
colluerant = had wet her lips. — 450. Dulce ; used as a noun = 
dulcem potent. Polenta Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 451. 
Oris. Gr. 396. IV. A. & S. 211, R. 6.-453. Neque adhuc = 
et nondum. Parte. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. —457. Ne sit (sc. ei) 
= that he may not have. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262. Nocendi. Gr. 
563. A. & S. 275. III. R. 1 and (1). —458. Lacerta. Gr. 417. 
A. & S. 256. 2. — 461. Nomen ; i. e. stellio, which the poet derives 
from stella. Corpora. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. Guttis = spots. 

— 462. Erraverit Gr. 525. A. & S. 265.-463. Mora. See on 
I. 214 Quaerenti — orbis = no part of the world remained for 
her to search. Gr. 386. 2, A. & S. 224, R. 1. — 464. Eundo. Gr. 



406 NOTES ON OVID. 

566. I. A. & S. 275, R. 4.-465. Fuisset Gr. 510 and 1. A. & S. 
261. 1. — 466, 467. Volenti (sc. ei) is equivalent to a dative of 
pessessor, aderant being used for erant Quo loqueretur = the 
means of speaking. Gr. 501. 1. A. & S. 264. 7. — 469. In = into. 
A. & S. 235 (2), R. 4. — 470. Persephones is the Greek form for 
Proserpinae. Summis. See on IV. 659. — 471. Simul = simul 
ac, as often. Tanquam — scisset = as if she then at length had 
discovered that her daughter had been carried off. Gr. 503. II. and 
506. A. & S. 263. 2 (1). — 473. Repetita = repeatedly. See on 
IV. 734. — 474. Sit. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 475. Munere. See 
on v. 345, and of. vv. 343, 344. — 477. Reperit. See on reptdit, II. 
157. Vertentia = (used for) turning. — 479. Leto = destruction. 

— 480. Fallere depositum = to betray their trust ; i. e. the seed 
sown. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 273. 2 (a) and 272, R. 6. Vitiata. 
See on v. 436. — 481. Terrae = Sicily ; which was famous for its 
fertility, in ancient times. — 482. Cassa jacet = lies useless; i.e. 
avails nothing. Primis in herbis ; i. e. as soon as they spring up. 

— 484. Sideraque. The final e is lengthened by the arsis. Gr. 
660. A. & S. 308. — 485. Jacta = that have been sown. Fati- 
gant = exhaust, hinder the growth of. — 486. Gramen is in the 
same construction as lolium and tribuli. — 487. Alpheias = Are- 
thusa ; a nymph of Elis, beloved by the river-god Alpheus, and 
changed by Diana into a fountain, that she might escape him. But 
he still pursued her ; and when she fled under the sea to Ortygia, he 
followed her, and rose with her on that island. Hence it was said 
that a cup thrown into the Alpheus would appear again in the foun- 
tain of Arethusa in Ortygia. — 489. Virginis is in the same con- 
struction as frugum. — 491. Terrae. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. 

— 492. Nihil; i. e. no punishment. Rapinae. Gr. 384. I. A. & S. 
223. Cf. v. 419 foil. — 494. Such transition from the singular to 
the plural is sometimes found even in prose. Cf. v. 504. — 496. 
Solo. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. Arethusa is in apposition with 
the subject of habeo. Penates. See on 1. 174. — 498. Mota — 
sim = why I have been driven from my native land. Gr. 525. A. & S. 
265. — 499. Ortygiam. Gr. 379. 3. 2). A. & S. 237, R. 5 {b) and 
{c). Narratibus. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. — 500. Curis- 
que. Gr. 425. A. & S. 251. — 501. Vultus. Gr. 402. III. A. & S. 
211, R. 6. Melioris = more cheerful. Pervia tellus. See on 
v. 487. — 504. Stygio = Stygian ; i. e. beneath the earth, near the 
infernal world. Labor = I flow. — 506. Vultu. Gr. 429. A. & S. 
250. 1. — 507. Maxima = domina. 

509. Ceu saxea = as if petrified. — 510. Attonitae = one 
thunderstruck. Gr. 391. 1 and 2. 4) (2). A. & S. 222, R. 1 and R. 2 
(6). Utque — amentia = and when her deep stupor was banished 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK V. 407 

by deep grief. — 512. Vultu. See on v. 506. — 513. Invidiosa is 
used in an active sense = indignant ; full of wrath against Pluto. — 
515. Matris; objective genitive. Gr. 396. II. A. & S. 211, R. 2. So 
illius. — 516. Moveat. Gr. 488. I. and 2. A. & S. 260, R. 6. So 
sit. Neu — partu = and do not, I pray, have less regard for her, be- 
cause I am her mother. — 518. Mihi. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. 
II. — 519, 520. Si — certius = if you call it finding to lose more 
certainly. Gr. 373 ; 550. A. & S. 230 and N. 3. So scire and 
the second reperire. On sit, see Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Rapta-; 
sc. est. Gr. 558. V. 2. A. & S. 273. 5, R. (3) and N. 6. — 521. 
Reddat. Gr. 505. A. & S. 263. 2 (1). Praedone. See on v. 
345. Marito. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204 and R. 1 (a). The idea is : 
if my daughter does not deserve such a fate, surely your daughter 
does not. — 524. Mini. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 221, R. 1. Si — pla- 
cet (sc tibi, or nobis) = if you will only call things by their right 
names. — 525. Injuria. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. So amor. — 
526. Nobis . . . pudori = a disgrace to us. Gr. 390. 1. 1). A. & S. 
227. — 527. Tu modo velis=if you will but consent to it; i.e. 
the marriage. See on reddat, v. 521. Ut — cetera = were there 
nothing else in his favor. Gr. 516. II. and 1. A. & S. 262, R. 2. — 
528. Esse. Gr. 549. A. & S. 269 (b) and R. 2. Quid — desunt 
= but (or, nay) other things are not wanting. " Quid quod often in- 
troduces a new and striking fact, when the literal translation would 
perhaps be : what would you say to the fact that — ? but the idea may 
often be more simply expressed by nay." Kefs Lat. Gram. § 1454 h. 
— 529. Sorte. See on v. 368. — 530. Discidii = of their separa- 
tion, or divorce. Repetet. See on reddat, v. 521. — 531. Lege = 
condition. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 249. II. — 532. Nam — est = for 
so it is enjoined by a decree of the Fates. Not even Jupiter could 
change the decrees of the Fates. See on I. 256. — 533. At — est 
= but Ceres is resolved : a construction like Gr. 388. II. A. & S. 
225. II. Educere. Gr. 549 and 1. A. & S. 269 and R. 2. 

535. Simplex ; i. e. with no idea of the danger. — 536. Puni- 
ceum . . . pomum = a pomegranate. — 537. Pallenti . . . cortice 
= its golden rind. Grana = the " grains " from which the fruit takes 
its name, pomum granatum. — 538. Ex omnibus. Gr. 398. 4. 2). 
A. & S. 212, R. 2, N. 4 So inter Nymphas. — 540. Avernales 
= infernal ; from the pestilential lake Avernus, in Campania, which 
was supposed to be an entrance to the lower world. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 
106, 126, 201, etc. — 541. Acheronte = Acheron ; one of the rivers 
of the infernal regions, here spoken of as a god, the father of Asca- 
laphus. Gr. 425 and 1. A. & S. 246, R. 2. Purvis. See on v, 404 — 

542. Reditum (sc. ProserJ>hiae) ademit = prevented her return. — 

543. Profanam = unhallowed, ill-omened. Some read profanum. 



408 NOTES ON OVID. 

— 544. Phlegethontide — of Phlegethon, another of the infernal 
rivers. — 546. Sibi ablatus = taken away from himself ; i. e. losing 
his own form. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. — 547. Inque — un- 
gues = his head becomes disproportionately large, and his nails are 
bent into long claws. Both nouns depend on in. — 548. Per = by 
means of. Some translate it "on" or "all over." — 549. Cf. Virg. 
A. IV. 462. — 552. Vobis ; sc. sunt. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Ache- 
loides = the Sirens, daughters of Achelous. Geratis. Gr. 518. I. 
A. & S. 263. 5 and R. 1. —554. Legeret. Gr. 518. 1. A. & S. 263, 
R. 2. — 555. In is rarely found with mixtus, which generally takes 
the ablative with or without cum, or the dative. Cf. Virg. A. V. 470. 

— 557. Curam = solicitude ; i. e. in behalf of Proserpina. — 559. 
Facilesque — habuistis = and found the gods favorable (to your 
prayers). — 561. Canor. The songs of the Sirens charmed all who 
heard them. Mulcendas. Gr. 562 ; 565. 1. A. & S. 275. II. and 
R. 3.-562. Deperderet. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262.-563. Re- 
mansit. Gr. 463. 1. A. & S. 209, R. 12 (3). — 564. Medius = as 
mediator between. See on v. 409. — 565. Ex aequo = aequaliter. 
Volventem (sc. se) = revolving. — 568. Facies — oris = both 
her feelings and her looks. — 569. Diti quoque = even to Pluto ; 
who was the most gloomy of gods. — 570. Ut Sol = as the sun (is 
joyful). 



METAMORPHOSES. Book VI. 



THE STORY OF NIOBE. — Niobe was the daughter of Tantalus 
and Dione, one of the Hyades. [See on III. 595.] She married 
Amphion, king of Thebes, and had seven sons and seven daughters, 
of whom she became so proud as to think herself superior to Latona 
and her two children, Apollo and Diana. How she was punished 
for her insolence the poet here tells us. 

146. Lydia was a district of Asia Minor, in the middle of the 
western side of the peninsula. Fremit = shudders ; i. e. at the pun- 
ishment of Arachne, who had boasted that she could surpass Minerva 
in weaving, and had been changed by the goddess into a spider. 
Fhrygia lay to the east of Lydia. — 148. Ante — illam = before 
her own marriage Niobe had known her; i.e. Arachne. — 149. 
Maeoniam = Maeonia, the ancient name of Lydia. Sipylus was 
a mountain of Lydia, and the ancient capital of Maeonia is said to 
have had the same name. — 150. Popularis = her countrywoman. 
— 151. Cedere. Gr. 552. 2. A. & S. 273. 2, N. 4 {a) and {b). So 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK VI. 409 

uti. Verbis minoribus = less arrogant language. Gr. 419. L 
A. & S. 245. I. — 152. Animos = pride. Sed enim = at vero. 
Conjugis = Amphion, who was famous for his skill in music. — 
153. Genus. See vv. 172- 176. —154. Illi. Gr. 385. A. & S. 
223, R. 2. Placerent Gr. 515. I. A. & S. 263. 2. —156. Dicta 
foret = dicta esset. Gr. 510. A. & S. 261. 1. Si — fuisset = if she 
had not seemed to herself so (and been vain of it). — 157. Tiresia 
= Tiresias, a celebrated prophet of Thebes. Gr. 425. 3. 1). A. & S. 
245. Manto, also called Daphne, inherited her father's skill in 
divination. — 159. Ismenides = Thebaides (v. 163) ; from the 
river Ismenus, which flows through Thebes. — 160. Latona was 
generally worshipped only in conjunction with her children. — 161. 
Lauro. The laurel was sacred to Apollo. Gr. 414 4 A. & S. 247. 3. 
The usual construction would be crinibusque innectite laurum. [Gr. 
386. 1. A. & S. 224]— 162. Ore. Gr. 414 4 A. & S. 247. 3. 
Paretur. Gr. 301. 3. A. & S. 184 2 (a) and {b). — 163. Jussis. 
Cf. 1. 399 ; III. 105. — 165. Celeberrima = stipata. — 166. Vesti- 
bus. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. Auro. Gr. 396. IV. A. & S. 
211, R. 6. — 167. Quantum ira sinit restricts formosa. — 169. 
Alta; i. e. haughtily erect. — 170. Quis — coelestes = what mad- 
ness is this, to place gods of whom you have only heard before those 
whom you have seen ? — 171. Per here denotes, not the means, but 
the wide extent, and = throughout. — 172. Tantalus, king of Lydia, 
or, as some say, of Argos, was invited to the table of the gods, but, 
having divulged to men the secrets which he heard there, was pun- 
ished in the lower world by being placed in a lake whose waters re- 
ceded when he tried to relieve his burning thirst, while over his head 
hung tempting fruits which ever eluded his grasp. Hence our word 
tantalize. Auctor = pater. — 173. Cui. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2, 
N. (6). Licuit. Gr. 556. I. A. & S. 269, R. 2. —174. Pleiadum. 
See on III. 595. Some legends make Taygete the mother of Niobe. 
Atlas. See IV. 632 - 662. — 176. Jupiter was the father of Tan- 
talus. Socero — illo = I boast him too as my father-in-law. Am- 
phion was a son of Jupiter. Gr. 414 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 177. 
Cadmi = Cadmus, the founder of Thebes. See III. 1 - 130. — 178. 
Domina. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. Fidibusque. The walls of 
Thebes had risen to' the music of Amphion's lyre. — 181. Accedit 
eodem === to this is added. — 182. Dea. See on V. 345. Hue = 
to this ; moreover. — 183. Habeat. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 185. 
Quoque = et quo. Titanida ; i. e. Latona, daughter of the Titan 
Coeus. Coeo. See on Tiresia, v. 157. — 186. Cui; i.e. Latonae. 
— 187. Pariturae. When Latona was about to become a mother, 
the jealous Juno bound all the countries of the earth by an oath not 
to allow her a resting-place. — 190. Dixit ; sc. Delos. Neptune 



4IO NOTES ON OVID. 

provided an asylum for Latona by raising the island Delos, which had 
previously floated under the sea, and making it fast. Cf. Virgil, A. 

III. 75 foil. — 192. Uteri == offspring. — 193. Neget. Gr. 486. II. 
A. & S. 260, R. 5. So dubitet. — 195. Cui. See on illi, v. 154. 
Possit. Gr. 501. IV. A. & S. 264. 4. 196. Eripiat. Gr. 515. 1. ; 
516. II. 1. A. & S. 262, R. 2. 197. Excessere = have gone be- 
yond ; i. e. have precluded. Fingite — meorum = suppose that 
some part of this multitude of my children may be taken away from 
me. On populo, see Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. — 199. Spo- 
liata = when thus bereaved. — 200. This line is given up by most 
of the commentators as hopelessly corrupt. Of the many readings, 
no one is satisfactory, and the conjectures of the critics do not mend 
the matter. Turba — orba may be translated : How far does she 
differ from the childless multitude ? — 201. Sacris. Gr. 422. 2. 
A. & S. 255, R. 3 {&). So capillis. — 202. Ponite = deponite, as 
often. — 203. Quodque licet = which is all they can do (after the 
royal prohibition). 

204. Cynthi = of Cynthus ; a mountain in Delos, sacred to 
Apollo and Diana. Hence they are often called Cynthius and Cynthia. 

— 206. Vobis — creatis = proud of having borne you. Gr. 431. 
A. & S. 257. — 208. Sim. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. —209. Nati. 
Gr. 439. 2. 1). A. & S. 205, R. 2 (1). — 211. Tantalis = the daughter 
of Tantalus. — 212. Quod = which (childlessness). Recidat. Gr. 
488. I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. For the long antepenult, see Gr. 669. V. 
A. & S. 307. 2 (1). — 213. Paternam. See on v. 172. — 217- 
Tecti. See on v. 209. Cadmeida. See on v. 177. — 219. As- 
siduis. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a). — 221. Genitis. See 
on V. 538. Amphione. See on Tiresia, v. 157. — 222. Tyrio 
suco = with the Tyrian juice ; a purple dye, for which the Tyrians 
were famous, obtained from a shell-fish. — 224. Qui — fuerat = 
who had been the first-born of his mother. — 227. Mini. Gr. 389. 
2. 2). A. & S. 228. 3. — 228. Frenis. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. 
Manu. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 (6). — 230. Inane. See on 

IV. 621. Sonitu. See on v. 206. So nube, v. 232. — 232. Rec- 
tor; sc. navis. — 233. EfEluat. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262, R. 5. — 
235. Summa. See on IV. 659. Cervice. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 
254, R. 3. — 237. Ut — pronus = as he was bent forward. Per 

— admissa = along (or over) the swift neck ; i. e. the neck of the 
swift horse. — 241. Nitidae ; because the bodies of the wrestlers 
were anointed with oil. — 246. Solo. See on cervice, v. 235. — 247. 
A spondaic line. Gr. 672. 3. A. & S. 310. 1 and R. 1. — 248. La- 
niata ; " by anticipation." See on IV. 729. — 250. Delius = 
Apollo; from his native Delos. Illi. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 
5 (1). — 252. Simul = simul ac. Hamis == the barbed point. Cf. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK VIII. 411 

V. 384. —254. Non modifies simplex. Damasichthona = Da- 

masichthon. Gr. 93. A. & S. 80. I. — 255. Qua — poples ; i. e. 
just below the knee. — 258. Pennis == the feathered part of the 
arrow. Tenus. Gr. 602. II. A. & S. 241, R. 1. — 261. Precan- 
do. Gr. 566. I. A. & S. 275, R. 4. — 262. Dique . . . dixerat = 
et dixerat : Di, etc. — 263. Ignarus — rogandos = ignorant that 
not all need be propitiated. Gr. 229 ; 552. 3. A. & S. 162. 15 ; 270, 
R. 1 (a). — 265. Arcitenens = Apollo, the bearer of the bow. Cf. 
Virg. A. III. 75. 

268. Certain fecere ; in prose, certiorem fecerunt. — 269. Mi- 
rantem — superi = wondering that the gods could, angry that they 
had dared, do this. Gr. 558. V. 1 and 2. A. & S. 273. 5 (3) and N. 
7. — 270. Haberent. Gr. 527. A. & S. 266. 1. — 272. Luce = 
vita. — 274. Latois = of Latona. — 275. Resupina = alta, v. 169. 

— 276. Invidiosa = envied. Cf. this passive or objective use of the 
word with the active or subjective, V. 513. Hosti. Gr. 388. I. 
A. & S. 225. III. — 277. Corporibus. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Or- 
dine. Gr. 414 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 279. Liventia = livid ; from 
beating. Cf. v. 248. — 280. Dolore. Gr. 414 4 A. & S. 247. 3. 

— 281. This line is probably spurious. — 283. Efferar = I am car- 
ried to my grave ; I die in the death of my children. — 284. Mis- 
erae mini = to me even in my wretchedness. See on corporibus, v. 
277. So fratri, v. 291. — 285. Quoque = even. — 289. Demisso 
crine; in token of grief. — 291. Ore. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 
294. Oraque — pressit = did not close her mouth (even in death). 
Sibi. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 1. Tbsit = exiit. Cf. I. 200. — 
296. Videres. Gr. 486 and 4. A. & S. 260. II. and R. 2. —299. 
Minimam ; sc. natu. — 303. Diriguit = she became rigid ; i. e. 
petrified. Malis. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 305. Nihil — 
vivum = there is nothing of life in her appearance. — 307. Con- 
gelat = becomes stone. — 308. Reddere gestus = to move. — 
311. Patriam. See on v. 149. Montis ; i. e. Sipylus. — 312. 
Lacrimas. Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 232 (2). 



METAMORPHOSES. Book VIII. 

THE STORY OF DAEDALUS AND ICARUS, [vv. 183 - 

235.] 

Daedalus was an Athenian, distinguished for his skill in sculpture 
and architecture. Being condemned to death for the murder of his 
nephew Perdix, he fled with his son Icarus to Crete, where he was 
protected by king Minos, and, among other works, constructed the 



412 NOTES ON OVID. 

famous labyrinth. After a time, he incurred the displeasure of the 
king, who imprisoned him. How he escaped is told in the story 
here given. — Cf. Virg. A. VI. 14-33, and Hor - c - !■ 3- 34; IL 20. 
13 j IV. 2. 2. 

184. Exilium; i. e. his absence from his native Athens. — 186. 
Obstruat; sc. Minos. Gr. 515. I. A. & S. 263. 2 (1). — 187. 
Omnia possideat = even if he possesses everything else. Gr. 
503. 1. A. & S. 260, R. 3. — 189. Naturamque novat = he re- 
news nature ; imposes new laws upon nature. — 190. Longam — 
sequente = a shorter following a longer one. As he begins with 
the smallest, it would seem more natural to say brevem longiore. — 

191. Ut — putes= so that you may (would) think that they have 
(had) grown by regular ascent. Gr. 494. A. & S. 262 and R. 1. — 

192. Avenis. The shepherd's pipe was made of reeds or straws of 
unequal length, joined together with wax. Cf. Virg. E. I. 2 ; III. 
25 ; V. 2, etc. — 193. Medias et . . . imas = the middles and the 
ends (of the feathers). Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. — 195. 
Imitetur. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262. — 196. Tractare. Gr. 552. 3. 
A. & S. 270, R. 1. Pericla ; the effect for the cause. Gr. 705. II. 
A. & S. 324. 2. — 199. Mollibat. Gr. 239. 1. A. & S. 162. 2. — 
200. Manus ultima = the last touch. — 203. Medio. See on 
v. 193. Curras. Gr. 492. 2. A. & S. 262. So gravet and adurat. 

— 204. Demissior. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15. So celsior. 

— 206. Inter utrumque = between the two (extremes). Spec- 
tare. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 273. 2 (d). Booten. See on II. 176. — 
207. Helicen. See on II. 132, 171. Orionis = of Orion, a promi- 
nent southern constellation. Cf. Virgil, A. I. 535 ; III. 517 ; IV. 52. 

— 208. Me duce. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a) and (b). — 213. 
Ante. Gr. 436. A. & S. 235, R. 10. —215. Sequi. Gr. 558. VI. 3. 
A. & S. 273. 2 and {b). Damnosas = perilous. — 217. Arundine. 
Cf. calamo, III. 587. — 218. Baculo. Gr. 419. II. A. & S. 245. II. 1. 
Pastor and arator are in apposition with aliquis. — 219. Possent. 
Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264. 1. — 220. Junonia ; because it was the 
birthplace of Juno. Cf. Virg. A. I. 16. — 221. Delos. See on II. 
597 and VI. 190. Paros was an island in the Aegean, one of the 
largest of the Cyclades. See on II. 264, and cf. Virg. A. III. 126. — 
222. Dextra is nominative with Lebynthos. Cf. III. 640. Le- 
bynthus, or Lebinthus, and Calymne are small islands in the Aegean. 
Melle. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 223. Volatu. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 
247. 1 (2). — 224. Cupidine. Gr. 414. 2. 3) (2). A. & S. 247, R. 2 (b). 
225. Rapidi = scorching. The word is derived from rapere, and 
originally is nearly = rapax. Hence it is applied to devouring seas 
and fires, and often, as here, to the sun. — 228. Remigio. Cf. re- 
migio alarum, Virg. A. I. 301 ; VI. 19. — 230. The southeastern 






METAMORPHOSES. BOOK VIII. 413 

part of the Aegean was called mare Icarium. — 233. Dicebat. Gr. 
469. II. A. & S. 145. II. 1. — 235. Tellus ; i. e. the island Icarus, 
or Icaria (now Nicaria), in the Aegean, west of Samos. Sepulti ; 
sc. Icari. 

THE STORY OF PHILEMON AND BAUCIS t [vv. 619- 
726.] 

Pirithous, the son of Ixion, had refused to believe that the gods 
could change the forms of men ; whereupon Lelex, king of the Lo- 
cri, relates the following story as one for the truth of which he can 
vouch. 

621. Dubites. Gr. 489. I. and 499. A. & S. 262 and R. 9. — 
623. Pelopeia. Pelops was driven out of Phrygia by Ilus, and fled 
to Greece. Pittheus was one of the sons of Pelops. — 624. Par- 
ents Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 225. II. — 626. Celebres = abounding 
in, frequented by. Cf. VI. 165. — 628. Atlantiades = Mercury, 
whose mother, Maia, was the daughter of Atlas. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 
258, and Hor. C. I. 10. 1. Caducifer. For a description of the 
cadziceus, or wand, of Mercury, see Virg. A. IV. 242-246. Alis. Gr. 
431. A. & S. 257. — 629. Locum = shelter, lodging. — 632. Ae- 
tata Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6.-633. Juncti = united (in 
marriage). Annis. Gr. 426. A. & S. 253. — 634. Patendo. 
Gr. 566. I. A. & S. 275, R. 4. — 635. Nee — ferendam = and 
not intolerable. — 636. Nee refert = nor matters it. Gr. 408. 2. 
A. & S. 219, R. 4. Requiras. Gr. 525 and 526. II. 2. A. & S. 
265, and R. 2. — 637. Tota — sunt. Cf. I. 355. Idem. Gr. p. 
61, foot-note, and 669. II. A. & S. 306, R 1 (1). — 638. Penates. 
See on I. 174. — 639. Submissoque — postes — and with bent 
head (i. e. stooping) entered the lowly door. — 641. Quo = on 
which. Textum = stragulum. — 642. Inde — hesternos = then 
she raked open the warm embers on the hearth, and kindles up the 
remnants of yesterday's fire. — 644. Et — anili = and blew it into a 
flame with her aged (feeble) breath. — 646. Minuit = broke them. 
— 648. Foliis. Gr. 425. 2. 2). A. & S. 251. Levat = takes 
down. — 649. Sordida — suis = a dingy flitch of bacon ; sordida, 
because hanging in the smoke, which blackens the beam also. 
Tigno. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 [b). So clavo, v. 654. — 651. 
Domat = /;w///V; i.e. boils it. — 652. Medias — horas = they 
beguile the intervening hours with conversation. — 654. Clavo . . . 
ab ansa = from a nail by the handle. — 655. Fovendos. Gr. 565. 
3. 2). A. & S. 274, R 7 (a). — 657. Sponda — salignis. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 2ii, R 6.-659. Et = even. — 660. Non indignanda 
= not to be scorned by ; i. e. not out of keeping with. Lecto is 
personified. Gr. 388. I. A. & S. 225. III. — 662. In the Augustan 
age, three-footed tables belong to the furniture of the poor. — 665. 



414 NOTES ON OVID. 

The meal is after the Roman manner, but in the simplest style : first, 
fruit, etc. to whet the appetite ; then the meal proper ; and, lastly, 
the dessert. Bacca = the olive, sacred to Minerva. Sincerae = 
chaste. Some understand Minervae = the olive (as Bacchus = vin- 
um, Ceres = frumentum, etc.) and sincerae, agreeing with it in that 
secondary sense = recentis, fresh, in distinction from condita = 
preserved. Corna. See on I. 105. Faece = sauce. — 667. Lac- 
tis — coacti = curd. — 668. Ova. The Romans usually began a 
meal with eggs and ended it with fruit ; hence the proverb ab ovo ad 
mala = from the beginning to the end. — 669. Omnia fictilibus 
= all things in earthern vessels. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. 
Eodem agrees with argento = (humorously) of the same silver ; 
i. e. of clay ; but some consider it the adverb. Eadem argilla is the 
reading of some editors, based on very slight manuscript authority. — 
670. Fago ; sc. de. — 671. Qua cava sunt ; i. e. on the inside. 
Illita. Gr. 651. 3 ; 654. A. & S. 284, Exc. 1 (2) {a), and 285. 1. 

— 672. Epulas. See vv. 648, 651. — 673. Nee longae senectae 
= not very old. The poor could afford only the cheap new wine. 
Rursus some understand to be merely expletive, like " come back 
again" = " come back," in colloquial English ; others translate, "is 
removed again," having been taken away at the end of the first 
course and brought back during the second. Referuntur = aufe- 
runtur. — 675. Falmis. See on v. 555. — 679. Boni = kind. 
Nee — voluntas = and a ready and generous good-will. — 681. 
Per se . . . succrescere = renewing itself. — 682. Attoniti. 
See on VI. 209. Note the same principle in the use of deinini, v. 
687. — 684. Nullis paratibus = want of preparation. — 685. 
Custodia = custos ; the abstract for the concrete noun. So tutela, 
v. 713. — 687. Fenna. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Aetate. Gr. 
414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 689. Necari. See on spectare, v. 206. 

— 690. Dique . . . dixexunt = et dixerunt : Di, etc. Cf. v. 203 ; 
II. 33, etc. — 691, 692. Impia. See v. 630. Immunibus. Gr. 
547. II. A. & S. 205, R. 6. Esse. 545. 2. 2). A. & S. 239, R. 1. 
Mali. Gr. 399. 2. 2). A. & S. 213, R. 5 (3). — 693. Ardua. Gr. 
396. III. 2. 3) (3). A. & S. 212, R. 3, N. 4. — 694. Ite simul ; sc. 
nobiscum. — 695. Levant = support. Tardi — annis. Cf. v. 
687.-696. Clivo. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 697. 
Summo ; sc. monte = the summit. Cf. IV. 709. — 700. Miran- 
tur. Gr. 522. I. (1). A. & S. 263. 4 (2). — 701. Ilia — duobus = 
that old hut (which had been) small even for its two owners. — 702. 
Furcas — columnae = columns took the place of the rude props 
(that had supported the roof). — 703. Stramina = the thatch. — 
704. Adopertaque — tellus == and the ground (within) is paved 
with marble. — 705. Saturnius = Jupiter. See on V. 420. — 706. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK X. 415 

Conjuge. See on V. 345. — 707. Optetis. Gr. 525. A. & S. 
265. — 710. Poscimus = we beg, entreat. — 711. Auferat. Gr. 
488. I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. So videam and sim tumulandus. — 
713. Vota — sequitur = their prayer is fulfilled. Fuere = they 
became. — 714. Annis — soluti = worn out with age. See on 
aetate, v. 687. — 715. Starent. Gr. 518. II. 1. A. & S. 263, R. 2. 
Locique — casus = and were talking of the history of the place ; 
i. e. the events here related. — 716. Frondere = frondescere. — 
718. Crescente cacumine = as the tree-top grew. Gr. 431. 
A. & S. 257. — 719. Valeque. See on v. 690. — 721. Tyaneius 
= of Tyana, a town of Cappadocia. — 722. Truncos = arbores. — 
723. Non vani = veraces. Vellent. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265, or 
264. 7, N. 3.-725. Ponensque recentia = and placing fresh 
garlands there myself. — 726. Dis. Gr. 390, and 2. A. & S. 227 
and R. 4. Qui — coluntur = and those who have honored them 
(the gods) are honored. 



METAMORPHOSES. Book X. 



THE STORY OF ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE. — Orpheus 
was the son of Oeagrus, king of Thrace, and the Muse Calliope. 
Presented with the lyre by Apollo, and instructed by the Muses in its 
use, he enchanted with its music not only the wild beasts, but the 
very trees and rocks, which moved from their places to follow the 
sound. The power of his music caused the Argonauts to seek his 
aid, which contributed materially to the success of their expedition. 
He married the nymph Eurydice, the legend of whose loss and re- 
covery is here given. 

1. Immensum. See on IV. 621. Croceo ; the color invariably 
associated with Hymen, who is called the " yellow-buskined god," 
the "saffron-robed," etc. The god is going from the nuptials of 
Iphis and Ianthe, in Crete, to those of Orpheus. — 2. Ciconumque 
= of the Cicones ; who lived in Thrace near the Hebrus. Hyme- 
naeus. See on IV. 758. — 3. Orphea = of Orpheus. Gr. 398. 2. 
A. & S. 211, R. 4 (a). — Nequicquam = in vain ; since the mar- 
riage was inauspicious. — 4. Ille ; i. e. Hymen. Sollennia verba = 
the customary festive songs. — 6. Fax. See on IV. 758, 759. Stri- 
dula = hissing ; like damp wood that will not burn. — 7. Nullos- 
que — ignes ; i. e. could not be kindled into a blaze by waving it in 
the air. — 8. Auspicio. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. Nupta nova 
= Eurydice. — 9. Naiadum = the Naiads ; the nymphs of fresh 



41 6 NOTES ON OVID 

water, whether of rivers, lakes, or springs. — 11. Rhodopeius = 
Thracian ; from Rhodope, a mountain of Thrace. — 12. Ne non 
tentaret = that he might not omit to try. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262. — 
13. Styga = the Styx ; i. e. the infernal regions. See on I. 139. 
Taenaria porta = by the Taenarian gate ; a cavern in Mt. Tae- 
narum (the promontory now called Cape Matapan), which was sup- 
posed to lead to the lower world. — 14. Leves = shadowy, ghostly. 
Sepulcris. Gr. 419. I. A. &S. 245. I. — 15. Persephonen. See 
on V. 470. Adiit. See on I. 114. Inamoena = joyless. — 16. 
Dominum = Pluto. Pulsis . . . nervis = striking the harp-strings ; 
i. e. as an accompaniment to his song. — 18. Quicquid, in apposi- 
tion with the subject of creamur, is more general, and therefore 
more emphatic, than the masculine plural would have been. So 
omnia, v. 32. — 20. Viderem. See on v. 12. So vincirem. — 22. 
Medusaei . . . monstri = Cerberus ; the three-headed dog, guar- 
dian of the entrance to Hades, called " Medusa-like " from his snaky 
hair. Hercules had bound him and dragged him to the upper world. 
Cf. Virg. VI. 395, 41 7 - 423. — 24. Crescentesque — annos = took 
her away in her youth. With abstulit, supply cui from in qitam. Gr. 
385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. — 25. Pati = to bear this, to be re- 
signed. Gr. 552. 1. A. & S. 271, N. 1 and R. 4. Tentasse. Gr. 
551. I. A. & S. 272, N. 1. — 26. Supera. . . era = in the upper 
world. Deus = Amor, or Cupid. — 27. An — hie = whether he is 
(known) even here. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Esse ; sc. eum. See on 
tentasse, v. 25. — 28. Rapinae ; i. e. the carrying away of Proser- 
pina. See V. 341 foil. — 29. Per, in oaths, is often separated from 
its object. Cf. III. 658. — 30. Chaos. See on II. 299. It is here 
put, as often, for the lower world. — 31. Properata — fata = un- 
ravel the thread of her premature fate. The Parcae, or Fates, were 
represented as spinning the thread of human destiny. Some make 
retexite = weave anew. The difference is slight. — 32. Omnia. See 
on v. 18. Some read debentur, and the weight of authority is, per- 
haps, in favor of it ; but we prefer debemnr. The change of gender 
in morati is natural enough, though some have wished to make it 
morata. — 36. Haec ; i. e ? Eurydice. Juris. Gr. 401 ; 402. I. 
A. & S. 211, R. 8 (2). — 37. Usum= her society. — 38. Veniam 
= this favor. Certum — mihi. I am resolved not to return. See 
on V. 533. The use of nolle is akin to that in prohibitions. Gr. 
535. 1. 3). A. & S. 267, R. 3. — 39. Leto. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 
247. 1. — 40. Ad (as in v. i6)=in accompaniment to. — 41. Tan- 
talus. See on VI. 172. — Captavit = tried to seize. — 42. Ixi- 
onis orbis = the wheel of Ixion, king of the Lapithae, who, for at- 
tempting to win the love of Juno, was chained in Tartarus to a wheel 
which revolved forever. — 43. Jecur = the liver ; i. e. of Tityus, a 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK X. 417 

giant, who, having offered violence to Diana, was cast into Tartarus, 
where he lay outstretched on the ground, with two vultures devouring 
his liver, which grew as fast as it was consumed. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 595 - 
600. — 44. Belides = the Danaides, daughters of Danaus, the son of 
Belus, who, for the murder of their husbands, were doomed to draw 
water in sieves to fill a leaky cask. Sisyphus was an avaricious and 
cruel king of Corinth, who was punished in Hades by having to roll 
up hill a huge stone which rolled back again as soon as it reached 
the top. The music of Orpheus wans a respite for all these wretches. 

— 46. Eumenidum; one of the Greek names of the Furies. It 
means " the benevolent goddesses " ; a mere euphemism to avoid call- 
ing the fearful beings by their real name. Conjux ; i. e. Proserpina. 

— 47. Oranti ; sc. ei. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. — 50. Rhodo- 
peius. See on v. 11. — 51. Ne depends on the command implied in 
legem. Gr. 558. VI. A. & S. 273. 2. — 51. Avernas = infernas. 
See on V. 540. — 52. Aut = or else ; " in opposition to a condition 
alluded to, but not completely expressed." Futura ; sc. sint, de- 
pending on the implied tit. — 56. Ne deficeret = lest she should 
fail (from fatigue). Gr. 492. 4 and 1). A. & S. 262 and R. 7. Vi- 
dendi. Gr. 563. 1. 2). A. & S. 275. III. R. 1 and (2). — 60. Quic- 
quam. Gr. 380 and 2. A. & S. 232 (3) and N. 2. — 61. Quere- 
retur. Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 260, R. 5. Amatam ; sc. esse. Gr. 
551. III. A. & S. 273, N. 7. — 62. Supremum. Gr. 438. 3. 
A. & S. 205, R. 8. — 63. Acciperet — could catch. Gr. 486. III. 
A. & S. 260. II. — 64. Nece. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1 (2). — 65. 
Medio ; sc. collo = his middle neck. — 66. Canis ; i. e. Cerberus, 
when Hercules dragged him to the upper world. See on v. 22. — 
67. Saxo. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. —68. The second illustration 
is that of Olenus. Nothing is known of the story except from this 
passage. Lethaea seems to have offended the gods by boasting of 
her beauty, and her husband to have wished to take the blame upon 
himself, and both to have been turned to stone. Quique Olenos = 
et (quam) Olenos (stupuit) qui. So tuque. — 69. Figurae. Gr. 
419. 4. 2). A. & S. 245. II. R. 1. — 71. Pectora. Gr. 705. III. 
A. & S. 324 3. Cf. Virg. A. II. 349. Ide. See on II. 218. — 73. 
Portitor ; i. e. Charon, who ferried shades across the Styx. Cf. 
Virg. A. VI. 298 - 304. — 74. Cereris — munere = without food. 

— 76. Esse. See on v. 61. — 77. Aquilonibus. See on I. 262. 
Haemon. See on II. 219. 



41 8 NOTES ON OVID. 



METAMORPHOSES. Book XL 

THE STORY OF THE DEATH OF ORPHEUS, [vv. i - 
84.] After the loss of Eurydice, Orpheus wandered among the woods 
and mountains, singing of his bereavement. The beasts and the 
birds gathered about him, and even the trees followed him, charmed 
by the magic of his voice and lyre. 

Tale nemus vates attraxerat, inque ferarum. 
Concilio medius turba volucrumque sedebat. 

At this point, the narrative in the text begins. 

3. Nurus = mulieres. Cf. II. 366. Ciconum. See on X. 2. Lym- 
phata = frantic ; i. e. carried away with Bacchic fury. Strictly, it 
means nympholeptic, or made insane by seeing the image of a nymph 
in the water. Lympha and nympha are originally the same word. — 
4. Pectora. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 5. Percussis — nervis. 
Cf. X. 16, 40. — 7. Nostri. Orpheus in his grief had shunned the 
society of women. — 8. Apollinei. See on Orphea, X. 3. — 9. 
Foliis. The hasta was a thyrsus, a staff twined with ivy and vine- 
leaves, carried by Bacchus and his votaries. See v. 28, and III. 667. 
— 13. Sed enim. See on VI. 152. —14. Abiit; final syllable 
lengthened by the caesura. Erinnys, or Erinys. See on I. 241. — 
15. ¥oxwa.t = essent. Gr. 486. I. A. & S. 260. II. or 261, R. 4, 
the condition being implied in sed, etc. — 16. Berecyntia ; from 
Berecyntus, a mountain in Phrygia, sacred to the goddess Cybele. 
Cf. Virg. A. VI. 785. The instruments used in her worship were 
adopted in the Bacchic orgies also. The Berecyntian pipe was 
curved like a horn ; hence inflato cornu ; sc. ejus. — 17. Bacchei ; 
the final syllable not elided. Cf. Virg. G. I. 281, 436 ; A. IV. 667, 
etc. See on X. 3. — 18. Sono. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Turn 
denique = turn demum. — 21. See Introduction to this story. — 
22. Maenades = Bacchantes ; from \ia\vo\iai, to be mad. Titu- 
lum = gloriam. Rapuere = attacked ; hence cruentatis dextris. 
Theatri ; i. e. the audience of beasts and birds. Theatrum is often 
put for the persons in the theatre. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. — 23. 
Inde. After tearing in pieces the animals which had thronged about 
Orpheus, they turn against the minstrel himself. Vertuntur ; used 
reflexively, as often. — 24. Luce = by day. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 186. 
— 25. Noctis avem = the night-owl. Structoque — theatro = 
in the amphitheatre ; which, being circular, while the theatre was 
semi-circular, may be described asa" theatre built up on both sides," 
or a double theatre. — 26. Matutina. The fights of wild beasts 
were the morning performance in the Roman theatre. Gr. 443. 2. 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK XL 419 

A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a). Cervus. After coeunt, ut, we should ex- 
pect canes as the subject ; but the change of construction does not 
seem to us so " awkward " as some of the critics have considered it. 

— 28. Non — factos = not made for such a use. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 
647. — 30. Neu — furori = and that they may not want for weap- 
ons in their frenzy. Gr. 491. A. & S. 262. Neu, as often in Ovid, 
=et ne. — 31. Presso. Cf. depresso aratro, Virg. G. I. 45. Subige- 
bant. Cf. I. 103 and Virg. G. I. 125. — 32. Fructum; i.e. the 
future harvest. — 34. Agmine ; i. e. the Bacchantes. — 35. Arraa = 
the tools, implements. — 36. Graves. Cf. iniquo pondere and gravi- 
bus, Virg. G. I. 164, 496. For sarculaque, see on I. 114. — 38. 
Divellere = have torn in pieces. Fata = caedem. — 41. Sacri- 
legae ; since Orpheus was of divine descent, and a favorite of Apollo 
and the Muses.— 42. Saxis. Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 225. II. —43. 
In ventos. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 705. — 47. Comam. Gr. 380. 
A. & S. 234 II. Lacrimis — suis = were swollen with their own 
tears. — 48. Obscuraque — pullo = their robes (or mantles) 
dark with mourning. Pullo is used as a noun. Carbasa ; the ma- 
terial for the thing made of it. Gr. 705. III. A. & S. 324 3. — 49. 
Dryades = the wood-nymphs. See on I. 192. Passos ; from 
pandere. — 50. Diversa locis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Cf. I. 
173. Hebre. See on X. 2 and II. 257. — 52. Nescioquid = I 
know not what ; i. e. something. The phrase is equivalent to an ac- 
cusative after queritur. Gr. 371. 3. 1). A. & S. 234 (2) and N. 1. 

— 54. Invectae ; sc. lingua et lyra. Flumen populare = his 
native river; i.e. the Hebrus. — 55. Litore. Gr. 419. I. A. & S. 
245. I. Lesbi = Lesbos (called Methymncean from Methymna, one 
of its chief cities) ; a large and important island, in the Aegean, off 
the coast of Mysia. Cf. Milton, in Lycidas : 

What could the Muse herself, that Orpheus bore, 
The Muse herself, for her enchanting son, 
Whom universal nature did lament, 
When by the rout that made the hideous roar 
His gory visage down the stream was sent, 
Down the swift Hebrus to the Lesbian shore ? 

56. Arenis. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. —57. Rore = 
aqua. — 58. Tandem = at last ; not earlier, as might have been 
expected. — 60. Congelat is here transitive. Cf. VI. 307. — 61. 
Terras. Gr. 371. 4 A. & S. 233 (3). Ante = before; i.e. when 
he had gone thither in search of Eurydice. See X. 13 foil. — 62. 
Arva piorum = the Elysian Fields. — 63. Ulnis == arms. See ref. 
on carbasa, v. 48. — 65. Anteit. Gr. 669. II. 2. A. & S. 306. 1. — 
66. Tuto ; i.e. without fear of losing her. See X. 51 foil. — 67. 
Lyaeus = Bacchus ; i. e. {Avaios) he who frees from care. Cf. Liber, 



420 NOTES ON OVID. 

III. 520. — 68. Suorum. According to some of the legends, 
Orpheus had introduced the orgiastic worship of Bacchus into Thrace. 

— 69. Edonidas = Thracian ; from the Edoni, or Edones, a people 
of Thrace, noted for their devotion to Bacchus. — 70. Quae — nefas 
= which (things) it is dreadful to behold ; a parenthetical clause, akin 
to nefas dictu [Ep. ex Pont. I. 9. 3.) etc. Radice. Gr. 414. 4. 
A. & S. 247. 3. — 71. In — secuta = as far as each had pursued ; 
i. e. where each had halted in the pursuit of Orpheus. Some make 
it = quotquot secutae sunt, as many as had pursued him. One editor 
frankly says that he does not understand the passage ; and another 
shows that he does not by translating : (Eilsse) womit eine jede ihm 
gefolgt war ; i. e. with which (feet) each had followed him ! — 72. 
Traxit = lengthened. — 73. The prose order would be : et ut volu- 
cris, ubi cms suum laqueis, quos callidus auceps abdidit, commisit et 
teneri se sensit, plangitur, etc. Laqueis. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 
75. Ac — motu = and fluttering tightens the cords by its motion ; 
i. e. its efforts to escape. — 78. Exsultantem = exsultare conaniem. 

— 79. Sint. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 80. Adspicit — suras = 
she sees wood take the place of her rounded limbs. — 82. Fiunt. 
Gr. 462. 2. A. & S. 209, R. 9. — 84. Putes. Gr. 486. I. A. & S. 
260. II. and R. 4. So fallare. 

THE STORY OF MIDAS, [vv. 85 - 193.] — 86. Choro = 
cohors, v. 89. i. e. train, retinue. Tymoli = Tymolus, or Tmolus, a 
a mountain in Lydia. Sui ; because of the vineta. — 87. Pac- 
tolon = the Pactolus, a river of Lydia, rising on Tmolus, famous for 
its golden sands. — 88. Invidiosus = envied, or enviable. See on 
VI. 276. Avenis. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 89. Hunc ; i. e. 
Bacchus. Satyri = Satyrs. See on I. 193. Bacchae = Bac- 
chantes. — 90. Silenus. The older Satyrs were generally called 
Silent, but one of these is commonly the Silenus, who always attends 
Bacchus, and is said to have been his foster-father. He is described 
as a jovial old man, bald, fat, generally drunk, riding on an ass, or 
supported by other Satyrs. — 92. Regem ; sc. Phrygiae. Orpheus. 
See on v. 68. — 93. Cecropio Eumolpo = Athenian Eumolpus ; 
a bard of Thracian birth, who spent much of his life in Attica, where 
he introduced the worship of Ceres and Bacchus. Here, as in some 
other legends, he is associated with Orpheus. There are so many 
conflicting stories about him that some of the ancients supposed that 
there were several Eumolpi. The final syllable of Cecropio is not 
elided, and the line is spondaic. See on v. 17, and on I. 117. — Ce- 
cropio, from Cecrops, first king of Attica and founder of Athens. — 
94. Qui ; i. e. Midas. — 95. Adventu. Gr. 414. 2 and 3). A. & S. 
247 and R. 2 (a). — 97. Cf. II. 114. — 98. Lucifer, like Aurora, 
is often = dies. Cf. Virg. A. V. 65. — 99. Alumno = Bacchus, who 



METAMORPHOSES. BOOK XI. 42 I 

is represented as ever youthful. — - 100. Huic = Midas. Optandi 
Gr. 562 and 1. A. & S. 275. II. Inutile = pernicious ; as it proved. 
— 102. Donis. Gr.419.1. A. & S. 245. I.— 103. Vertatur. Gr. 
493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 104. Solvit = bestows. — 105. Petis- 
set. Gr. 234. 1 ; 520. II. A. & S. 162. 7 (a) ; 266. 3. — 106. 
Berecyntius heros ; i. e. Midas. See on v. 16. — 107. Fidem . . . 
tentat = tests the truth. — 108. The order is : non alia ilice vir- 
gam fronde virentem detraxit. Fronde. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. 
— 110. Hutuo. Gr. 424. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 1. — 112. Massa; sc. 
aurea, or aitri. Cereris = of wheat. Cf. Virg. A. I. 177. — 114. Hes- 
peridas — putes = you would think that the He«perides had given 
it to him. The Hesperides were the guardians of the golden apples 
which Terra gave to Juno at her marriage with Jupiter. See on IV. 
637. For putes, see on v. 84. So posset, v. 117. — 117. Danaen; 
an allusion to the golden shower in which Jupiter visited Danae. See 
on IV. 611. — 118. Vix — capit = scarcely can he grasp in thought 
his own hopes. Fingens = as he imagines. 120. Tostae frugis 
= corn roasted (and ground, and made into bread). Gr. 409. 1. 
A. & S. 220. 3. Cf. Virg. G. I. 267; A. I. 179. — 121. Cerealia 
munera. Cf. X. 74.— 123. Dente. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. 
— 124. Dente. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. Premebat = covered. — 
125. Auctorem muneris = Bacchus ; i.e. wine. Cf. v. 112, and 
see on VIII. 665. Undis = aqua. See on V. 555.— 126. Vi- 
deres. Gr. 486. I. and 4. A. & S. 260. II. R. 2, or 261, R. 4. —128. 
Voverat = had prayed for. — 130. Meritus. Gr. 443. A. & S. 
205, R. 15. Auro. Gr. 414. 2. 3). A. & S. 247 and R. 2 {a). — 
133. Specioso damno = this splendid wretchedness. — 134. Mite 
deum (=deorum) numen = mitis dens. Cf. Virg. A. II. 623, 777. 
— 135. Restituit = restored him ; i. e. to his former nature. Fac- 
taque — solvit = and revokes the gift he had bestowed in fulfilment 
of his promise. In v. 104, munera solvit means " fulfils his promise 
concerning the gift," or frees himself 'from his obligation by bestowing 
it ; here it means " frees Midas from the gift." In both cases solvere 
has its original meaning, "to loosen, unbind, or release." — 136. 
Neve . . . sdt = et ait: JVe, etc. Cf. I. 151 ; II. 33, etc. Maneas. 
Gr. 491. A. & S. 262. — 137. Sardibus = Sardes, or Sardis, the 
capital of Lydia. Amnem ; i. e. the Pactolus. See on v. 87. — 138. 
Ferque — viam = and take your way along the height of the bank, 
up the stream. Undis. Gr. 391. A. & S. 222, R. 1 (b). — 139. 
Venias. Gr. 522. II. A. & S. 263. 4. —140. Fonti. Gr. 386. 1. 
A. & S. 224, N. 1. Plurimus = maximus. Cf, Virg. A. I. 419. — 
141. Corpusque — crimen = while you bathe your body, wash 
away your fault. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 741. — 142. Jussae. Cf. I. 399; 
VI. 163, etc. Vis aurea ; i. e. the power of changing everything to 



42 2 NOTES ON OVID. 

gold, which in v. 141 is called crimen, because he owed it to his own 
folly. — 144. Jam veteris = now ancient. Venae ; sc. aureae. — 
145. Auro pallentia. Cf. v. no. Madidis glebis = in their 
moist clods. 

147. Pana = Pan ; the great god of flocks and shepherds, and of 
everything connected with pastoral life. His worship was associated 
with that of Bacchus and the Nymphs. — 148. Pingue = dull, 
stupid. Ut ante ; i. e. when he wished to change what he touched 
to gold. — 149. Domino. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. — 151. 
Clivoque — utroque = and sloping on either side. — 152. Sar- 
dis was at the foot of the mountain to the north, Hypaepa to the 
south. — 153. Jactat = boasts. — 154. Cerata arundine. See 
on VIII. 192. Modulatur = accompanies. — 155. Prae se = 
prae suis (cantibus) = in comparison with his own music. — 156. 
Tmolo ; i. e. the god of the mountain, who acted as judge of the 
contest. Impar ; since Apollo was the god of music. — 158. He 
removes the trees, as one pushes back his hair from his ears, that he 
may hear the better. Caerula; suggested probably by the azure 
hue of mountains seen in the distance. — 161. Calamis. See on 
VIII. 192. Gr. 414.4. A. & S. 247. 3. —162. Barbarico; i.e. 
Phrygio. Aderat = he was present ; with many others, as appears 
from v. 173. Canenti; sc. ei. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 163. 
Hunc ; i. e. Pan. Sacer ; as the god of the mountain. So sancti, 
v. 172.— 164. Sua. Gr. 449. 2. A. & S. 208 (7). —165. Caput. 
Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. Lauro. See on I. 106. Parnaside. 
See on I. 317. — 166. Murice. See on I. 332. — 167. Distinctam 
= set, inlaid. Dentibus Indis ; i.e. ivory (from India). — 168. 
Laeva; sc. manu. — 169. Artificis — fuit = his very attitude 
shows the artist. — 171. Submittere = acknowledge to be inferior. 
— 174. Delius = Apollo ; from Delos, his birth-place. See on VI. 
190. — 175. Retinere. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 273. 4. — 176. 
Trahit in spatium — lengthens them. — 177. Imo = ima parte. 
Posse moveri (= the power of motion) is the object of dat ; a 
poetical construction. — 178. Hominis. Gr. 401. A. & S. 211, R. 
8 (3). In = in regard to. — 179. A ares. Gr. 374. 7. A. & S. 234, 
R. 1 {a). — 180. Pudorej the effect for the cause. Gr. 705. II. 
A. & S. 324. 2. — 181. Tiaris = tiara ; a Phrygian head-dress, cov- 
ering the cheeks, and fastened under the chin. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 216. 
— 186. Adspexerit. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 187. Voce — 
haustae = in a low voice tells and whispers to the hole. Terrae 
haustae = loco unde .terra hausta erat. — 190. Creber — coepit = 
there a thick growth of rustling reeds began to rise. Arundinibus. 
Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 192. Agricolam ; i.e. the servant. 
The humor of the expression has been lost on most of the critics, 



TRISTIA. BOOK IV. 423 

some of whom have written long and dull notes to explain and jus- 
tify it, while others have wasted their ingenuity on conjectural emen- 
dations, like arcanum, agricolis, auriculas, etc 



TRISTIA. Book IV. 



ELEGY X. In this poem, written during his exile, the author 
gives us a sketch of his life and fortunes. [See Life of Ovid, p. 

365.] 

For the measure of the poem, see Gr. 676. A. & S. 311. 

1. Ille. Gr. 450. 5. A. & S. 207, R. 24. Qui fueiim depends 
on noris. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Lusor = singer. Amorum ; 
referring to the Amores, etc See Life. — 3. Sulmo ; a town of the 
Peligni, in the country of the Sabines, about ninety miles northeast 
of Rome. It was situated on two small mountain streams, the water 
of which was very cold. Hence gelidis uberrimus undis. — 4. The 
Roman mile was 4,854 English feet, or about nine tenths of the Eng- 
lish mile. — 6. In the year 43 B. C., the consuls Aulus Hirtius and 
C. Yibius Pansa were sent with Octavianus against Antony, who was 
besieging D. Brutus at Mutina. Pansa was defeated by Antony, and 
died of a wound received in the battle. Hirtius retrieved this dis- 
aster by defeating Antony, but he also fell while leading an assault 
on the besieger's camp. — 7. Si quid id est = if that is anything ; 
meaning that it is something to boast of. Many passages in his 
poems show that Ovid was proud of his family. Cf. Amor. III. 15. 
5 ; Ep. ex Pont. IV. 8. 17. Ordinis ; sc equestris, implied in the fol- 
lowing eques. — 8. Fortuna munere ; i. e. by the possession of a 
fortune of 400 sestertia, which under the law of L. Roscius Otho 
(passed A. U. C. 687), entitled a person to equestrian privileges. — 
11. Lucifer — idem; i. e. we both had the same birthday. See on 
Met. XL 98. — 12. The libum was a cake offered to the Genius 
(the attendant spirit, or " guardian angel," of the person), on birth- 
days. — 13. Haec — solet = this is the first of the five days sacred 
to the warlike Minerva, which is bloody with the fight of gladiators ; 
i. e. the second day of the Quinquatria, a. festival in honor of Miner- 
va, held on the 19th of March and the four following days. Of the 
first day Ovid {Fasti, III. 811) says: Sanguine prima vacat, nee fas 
concurrere ferro ; but on the others there were shows of gladiators. 
— 16. Iusignes ab arte = distinguished for learning. — Eloqui- 
um = eloqicentiam. Tendebat = inclined to; had a bent for. — 



424 NOTES ON OVID. 

19. Coelestia sacra; i. e. the worship of the Muses. —22. Mae- 
onides = Homer ; from Maeonia, where he was said to have been 
born. See on Met. VI. 149. — 23. Helicone. See on II. 219. — 
24. Verba — modis = words free from measure ; i. e. prose. — 28. 
Liberior toga ; i. e. the toga virilis, for which the boy of noble birth, 
at about the age of fifteen, exchanged the toga praetexta. He then 
ceased to be an infans, and entered on the legal rights of manhood. 
Hence liberior. For the datives, see Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 225. II. — 
29. The latus clavus, or broad purple stripe down the front of the 
tunic, was the badge of senatorial rank. Augustus, however, allowed 
the sons of senators, and, in some cases, of equites whose fortunes 
equalled that of senators, to wear the latus clavus, when they as- 
sumed the toga virilis. — 32. Cf. Hor. C. II. 17. 5. — 34. Deque — 
fui = and I became one of the Triumviri ; i. e. the Triumviri 
Capitales, whose duty it was to inquire into all capital crimes, and 
who had the care of public prisons. — 35. Curia — est = the sen- 
ate was now open to me, but (not desiring to enter it) I laid aside the 
latus clavus. When a young eques was allowed to wear the latus 
clavus (see on v. 29), he gave it up on reaching the age when he was 
admissible into the senate, if he did not desire to become a senator, 
and assumed the angustus clavus, the badge of the equestrian order. 
— 36. Onus ; i. e. the senatorship. — 38. Fugax, in poetry, some- 
times takes a genitive of the thing which is shunned. — 39. Aorriae 
Sorores = the Muses ; since Helicon and Aganippe, their favorite 
haunts, were in Aonia, or Boeotia. See on I. 313. — 40. Otiu?n 
often denotes freedom from the cares of public life. — 44. Macer ; 
i. e. Aemilius Macer, who wrote a poem, or poems, now lost, upon 
birds, serpents, and medicinal plants. He was born at Verona, 
and was a friend of Virgil's. — On the subjunctives, see Gr. 525. 
A. & S. 265. — 45. S. Aurelius Propertius, the poet, was born 
about B. C. 51. Little is known of his life. As an elegiac poet, he 
ranks very high, and, among the ancients, it was a disputed point 
whether the preference should be given to him or to Tibullus. Ig- 
nes ; i. e. love-poems. — 47. Ponticus ; a poet, less noted, who 
wrote on the Theban War in hexameter (heroo) verse. Bassus ; 
a poet mentioned also by Propertius. Iambo = iambic verse. — 

48. Dulcia — mei ; i. e. were favorites in my circle of friends. — 

49. Numerosus Horatius = the tuneful Horace. — 50. Ausonia 
= Italian. See on Met. V. 350. — 51. Ovid was twenty-four years old 
when Virgil died, but the latter had resided for some years at Naples. 
Albius Tibullus, the elegiac poet, died in the same year with Virgil, 
or soon after. The poetry of his contemporaries shows him to have 
been a gentle and singularly amiable man. — 53. C. Cornelius Gal- 
lus, born about B. C. 66, was an intimate friend of Virgil, Varus, 



TRISTIA. BOOK IV. 425 

Ovid, and other eminent men of his time, and highly esteemed as a 
poet ; but none of his works have come down to us. — 54. The series 
of elegiac poets, according to Ovid, is, therefore : Tibullus, Gal- 
lus, Propertius, Ovidius. — 56. Thalia mea = my muse. Thalia, 
at least in later times, was " the Muse of comedy and of merry and 
idyllic poetry." — 57. Populo legi; i.e. in public, either in the 
Forum or the baths. The practice had become a common one at 
the time here referred to. — 60. The real name of the Corinna, 
celebrated in the A?nores of Ovid, is not known to us. Sidonius 
Apollinaris says that she was Julia, the daughter of Augustus, and 
some modern scholars think this not improbable. — 63. Quum fu- 
gerem = when I went into exile. Placitura = which would per- 
haps have pleased. At this time he burned the Meta7?iorphoses. See 
Life.— 64, Studio. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. 

65. Molle — telis = susceptible and by no means proof against 
the arrows of Cupid. — 66. Moveret. See ref. on v. 44. — 67. 
Ess em is subjunctive after qictim causal. Hie = such ; i. e. thus 
susceptible. — 68. Fabula = scandal. — 69 - 72. See Life. — 73. 
Ultima. She was connected with the noble house of the Fabii and 
also with the imperial family. — 74. Conjux. Gr. 547. I. A. & S. 
271, N. 2. — 75, 76. Filia — avum ; i.e. his daughter, Perilla, was 
twice married, and had a child by each husband. — 77, 78. Since a 
lustrum is a period of five years, Ovid's father had reached the age 
of ninety. — 79. Me. Gr. 371. 3. 1). A. & S. 232 (2) and N. 1. 
Some editors read, me . . . adempto. — 80. Proxima justa = the 
last honors. His mother died soon after her husband. — 83. Me. 
Gr. 381 and 1. A. & S. 238. 2. — 84. Nihil. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 
232 (3). — 85. Si — restat ; i. e. if death is not annihilation ; if the 
soul is immortal. — 86. Gracilis = thin, insubstantial. Cf. leves 
poptdos, Met. X. 14. — 89, 90. Causam jussae fugae = that the 
cause of my banishment. Errorem. Ovid says again and again 
that his offence was an error, not a crime. See Life. — 91. Studi- 
osa (sc. met) = devoted. — 92. Pectora. See on Met. X. 71. It 
would seem from this line that friends had requested him to write this 
sketch of his life. — 94. Antiquas ; i. e. gray. — 95, 96. Pisaea — 
equus ; i. e. ten times had the horses won the prize in the Olympian 
races. The Olympian games were celebrated, once in four years, 
near Pisa, in Elis. Ovid here (as in Ep. ex Pont. IV. 6. 5, where he 
uses the expression, qiiinquennis Olympias) makes the Olympiad 
equal to the Roman lustrum (see on v. 78). He was fifty-one years 
old at the time of his banishment. 97. — See Life. — 101. Ovid re- 
peatedly complains of the treachery of those about him. Cf. Ep. ex 
Pont. II. 7. 62 : Ditata est spoliis perfida turba meis. — 106. Cepi — 
arma = I took up the arms of my situation ; i. e. I met the change 



426 NOTES ON OVID. 

bravely. — 108. The hidden pole is the Southern ; the visible, the 
Northern. Cf. Virg. G. I. 242 foil. — 110. Sarmatis ora = the 
Sarmatian shore. Sarmatia was the general name for the northeast- 
ern part of Europe and the northwestern part of Asia. The Danube 
separated it from Thrace, just within whose boundaries the Getae 
lived. — 111. Circumsoner. Gr. 516. II. and 3. Some editors 
read circumsonor. Compare quamvis . . . est, v. 113. 113. Refera- 
tur. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264 7. — 116. Lucis = vitae. — 117. 
Gratia . . . tibi = is thy favor ; i. e. I owe to thee. The subject of 
the sentence is the clause depending on quod. — 119. Ab Istro = 
from the Danube ; i. e. from this place of exile. For the change of 
number in nos . . . mihi, see Met. V. 517, 518 ; XL 132, 133, etc. — 
120. Helicone. See on v. 23. — 122. Ab exsequiis =post exse- 
quias. — 123. Detrectat praesentia ; i. e. depreciates the works 
of living authors. — 124. Nostris ; sc. operibus. — 128. Plurimus. 
See on Met. XI. 140. — 130. Protinus — tuus ; i. e. though I die, 
I shall not be forgotten. Cf. Hor. C. II. 7. 21 ; III. 30. 6. Cf. also 
the closing verses of the Metamorphoses : — 

y<zmque opus peregi quod nee Jovis ira nee ignes 
Nee fioterit ferrum nee edax abolere vetustas. 
Quum volet ilia dies quae nil nisi corporis hujtis 
Jus kabet, incerti spatium mihifiniat aevi ; 
Parte tamen meliore mei super alta perennis 
Astra ferar nomenque erit indelebile nostrum, 
Quaque patet domitis Roma?ia potentia terris 
Ore legar populi, perque omnia saecula fama, 
Si quid habent veri vatum praesagia, vivam I 



THE LIFE OF VIRGIL. 



P. Virgilius (or Vergilius) Maro, was born on the 15th of Octo- 
ber, B. C. 70, in the first consulship of Cn. Pompeius Magnus, and M. 
Licinius Crassus, at Andes, a small village near Mantua in Cisalpine 
Gaul. The tradition, though an old one, which identifies Andes with 
the modern village of Pietola, may be accepted as a tradition, without 
being accepted as a truth. The poet Horace, afterwards one of his 
friends, was born B. C. 65 ; and Octavianus Caesar, afterwards the 
Emperor Augustus, and his patron, in B. C. 63, in the consulship of 
M. Tullius Cicero. Virgil's father probably had a small estate which 
he cultivated : his mother's name was Maia. The son was educated 
at Cremona and Mediolanum (Milan), and he took the toga virilis at 
Cremona on the day on which he commenced his sixteenth year, in B. 
C. 55, which was the second consulship of Cn. Pompeius Magnus 
and M. Licinius Crassus. It is said that Virgil subsequently studied 
at Neapolis (Naples), under Parthenius, a native of Bithynia, from 
whom he learned Greek ; and the minute industry of the grammarians 
has pointed out the following line (Georg. I. 437) as borrowed from 
his master : 

Glauco et Panopeae et Inoo Melicertae. 

He was also instructed by Syron, an Epicurean, and probably at 
Rome. Virgil's writings prove that he received a learned education, 
and traces of Epicurean opinions are apparent in them. His health 
was always feeble, and there is no evidence of his attempting to rise 
by those means by which a Roman gained distinction, oratory and 
the practice of arms. Indeed, at the time when he was born, Cisal- 
pine Gaul was not included within the term " Italy," and it was not 
till B. C. 89 that a Lex Pompeia gave even the Jus Latii to the in- 
habitants of Gallia Transpadana, and the privilege of obtaining the 
Roman civitas by filling a magistratus in their own cities. The Ro- 
man civitas was not given to the Transpadani till B. C. 49. Virgil, 
therefore, was not a Roman citizen by birth, and he was above 
twenty years of age before the civitas was extended to Gallia Trans- 
padana. 



428 THE LIFE OF VIRGIL. 

It is merely a conjecture, though it is probable, that Virgilius re- 
tired to his paternal farm, and here he may have written some of the 
small pieces which are attributed to him, the Culex, Ciris, Moretum, 
and others. The defeat of Brutus and Cassius by M. Antonius and 
Octavianus Caesar at Philippi, B. C. 42, gave the supreme power to 
the two victorious generals, and when Octavianus returned to Italy, 
he began to assign to his soldiers lands which had been promised 
them for their services. But the soldiers could only be provided with 
land by turning out many of the occupiers, and the neighborhood of 
Cremona and Mantua was one of the districts in which the soldiers 
were planted, and from which the former possessors were dislodged. 
There is little evidence as to the circumstances under which Virgil 
was deprived of his property. It is said that it was seized by a vet- 
eran named Claudius or Clodius ; and that Asinius Pollio, who was 
then governor of Gallia Transpadana, advised Virgil to apply to Oc- 
tavianus at Rome for the restitution of his land, and that Octavianus 
granted his request. It is supposed that Virgil wrote the Eclogue 
which stands first in our editions, to commemorate his gratitude to 
Octavianus Caesar. Whether the poet was subsequently disturbed 
in his possession and again restored, and whether he was not firmly 
secured in his patrimonial farm till after the peace of Brundusium, B. 
C. 40, between Octavianus Caesar and M. Antonius, is a matter which 
no extant authority is sufficient to determine. 

Virgil became acquainted with Maecenas before Horace was, and 
Horace (Sat. I. 5, and 6. 55, etc.) was introduced to Maecenas by Vir- 
gil. This introduction was probably in the year B. C. 38 ; but, since 
the name of Maecenas is not mentioned in the Eclogues of Virgil, we 
may perhaps conclude that it was not until after they were written 
that the poet was on those intimate terms with Maecenas which 
ripened into friendship. Horace, in one of his Satires (Sat. I. 5), in 
which he describes the journey from Rome to Brundusium, men- 
tions Virgil as one of the party, and in language which shows that 
they were then in the closest intimacy. The time to which this 
journey relates is somewhat uncertain, but the best authorities agree 
in fixing it in the year B. C. 37. (See Hor. Sat. I. 5. Introd.) 

The most finished work of Virgil, his Georgica, an agricultural 
poem, was undertaken at the suggestion of Maecenas, and it was 
probably not commenced earlier than B. C. 37. " The tradition that 
Maecenas himself suggested the composition of Georgics may be ac- 
cepted, not in the literal sense which has generally been attached to 
it, as a means of reviving the art of husbandry and the cultivation of 
the devastated soil of Italy ; but rather to recommend the principles 
of the ancient Romans, their love of home, of labor, of piety, and or- 
der; to magnify their domestic happiness and greatness; to make 



THE LIFE OF VIRGIL. 429 

men proud of their country, on better grounds than the mere glory 
of its arms and the extent of its conquests. It would be absurd to 
suppose that Virgil's verses induced any Roman to put his hand to 
the plough, or to take from his bailiff the management of his own 
estates ; but they served undoubtedly to revive some of the simple 
tastes and sentiments of the olden time, and to perpetuate, amidst the 
vices and corruptions of the empire, a pure stream of sober and inno- 
cent enjoyments To comprehend the moral grandeur of the 

Georgics, in point of style the most perfect piece of Roman literature, 

we must regard it as the glorification of Labor On the labors 

of the husbandman, hard and coarse as they seem to the unpurged 
vision, Virgil throws all the colors of the radiant heaven of the im- 
agination. Labor improbus, incessant, importunate labor, conquers 
all things ; subdues the soil, baffles the inclemency of the seasons, 
defeats the machinations of Nature, that cruel stepmother, and wins 
the favor and patronage of the gods."* 

The concluding lines of the Georgica were written at Naples (Georg. 
IV. 559), but we can hardly infer that the whole poem was written 
there, though this is the literal meaning of the words, 
Haec super arvorum cultu pecorumque canebam. 
We may however conclude that it was completed after the battle of 
Actium, B. C. 31, while Caesar was in the East. 

The epic poem of Virgil, the Aeneid, was probably long contem- 
plated by the poet. Like Milton, he appears from a very early period 
to have had a strong desire of composing an epic poem, and, like him 
also, to have been long undecided on his subject. He is said to have 
begun a metrical chronicle of the Alban Kings, but afterwards to 
have given it up because of the harshness of the names. After the 
completion of the Georgics, or perhaps somewhat earlier, he laid 
down the plan of a regular epic on the wanderings of Aeneas, and 
the Roman destinies ; to form a sort of continuation of the Iliad to 
Roman times, and to combine the features of that poem and the Odys- 
sey. The idea was sufficiently noble, and the poem, long before its 
publication or even conclusion, had obtained the very highest repu- 
tation. While Virgil was at work upon it Propertius wrote with 
generous admiration (Eleg. II. 34, 65) : 

Cedite, Romani scriptores ! cedite, Graii ! 
Nescio quid majus nascitur Iliade ! 
Augustus, while absent on his Cantabrian campaign, wrote repeat- 
edly to Virgil for extracts from his poem in progress ; but the poet 
declined, on the ground that his work was unworthy the perusal of 
the prince. The correspondence is recorded by Macrobius (Satur- 
nalia, I.), but its genuineness is very questionable. We may infer 
* Merivale, Hist, of the Romans under tlie Empire, Vol. IV. p. 440. 



43° THE LIFE OF VIRGIL. 

from the passage of Propertius just quoted, and from the allusion in 
the same elegy to the recent death of Gallus, that Virgil was engaged 
on his work in B. C. 24. Propertius appears, from other allusions in 
his elegies, to have been acquainted with the poem of Virgil in its 
progress ; and he may have heard parts of it read. In B. C. 23 died 
Marcellus, the son of Octavia, Caesar's sister, by her first husband ; 
and as Virgil lost no opportunity of gratifying his patron, he introduced 
into the sixth book of the Aeneid (v. 883) the well-known allusion to 
the virtues of this youth, who was cut off by a premature death : 

Heu miserande puer ! si qua fata aspera rumpas, 

Tu Marcellus eris. 

Octavia is said to have been present when the poet was reciting this 
allusion to her son, and to have fainted from her emotions. She re- 
warded the poet munificently for his excusable flattery. As Marcel- 
lus did not die till B. C. 23, these lines were of course written after 
his death, but Virgil may have sketched his whole poem, and even 
finished in a way many parts in the later books before he elaborated 
the whole of his sixth book. The completion of the great work occu- 
pied the few remaining years of his life ; but it never received the 
finishing touches, and it is said that in his last illness he wished to 
burn it. But his friends would not allow the poem to be sacrificed 
to a morbid sensibility. " Augustus placed it in the hands of Varius 
and Tucca for the necessary correction, but strictly charged them to 
make no additions, nor even to complete the few unfinished lines at 
which the hand of the master had paused or faltered. Great, un- 
doubtedly, is the debt we owe him for this delicate consideration. 
The Roman epic abounds in moral and poetical defects ; neverthe- 
less it remains the most complete picture of the national mind at its 
highest elevation, the most precious document of national history, if 
the history of an age is revealed in its ideas, no less than in its events 
and incidents. This is the consideration which, with many of us, 
must raise the interest of the Aeneid above that of any other poem 
of antiquity, and justify the saying of I know not what Virgilian en- 
thusiast, that if Homer really made Virgil, undoubtedly it was his 
greatest work." * 

When Augustus was returning from Samos, where he had spent 
the winter of B. C. 20, he met Virgil at Athens. The poet, it is said, 
had intended to make a tour of Greece, but he accompanied the em- 
peror to Megara, and thence to Italy. His health, which had been 
long declining, was now completely broken, and he died soon after his 
arrival at Brundusium, on the 22d of September, B. C. 19, not hav- 
ing quite completed his fifty-first year. His remains were transferred 
to Naples, which had been his favorite residence, and placed on the 
* Merivale, op. cit. VoL IV. p. 448. 



THE LIFE OF VIRGIL. 43 1 

road (Via Puteolana) from Naples to Puteoli (Pozzuoli), between the 
first and second milestones from Naples. The monument now called 
the tomb of Virgil is not on the road which passes through the tun- 
nel of Posilippo ; but if the Via Puteolana ascended the hill of Posilip- 
po, as it may have done, the situation of the monument would agree 
very well with the description of Donatus. 

The following inscription is said to have been placed on the tomb : 
Mantua me genuit, Calabri rapuere, tenet nunc 
Parthenope. Cecini pascua, rura, duces. 
From internal evidence it is improbable that it was written by the 
poet, though Donatus says that it was. 

Virgil named as heredes in his testament his half-brother, Valerius 
Proculus, to whom he left one half of his estate, and also Augustus, 
Maecenas, L. Varius, and Plotius Tucca. The poet had been en 
riched by the liberality of his patrons, and he left behind him a con 
'siderable property, and a house on the Esquiline Hill near the gar 
dens of Maecenas. He used his wealth liberally, and his library 
which was doubtless a good one, was easy of access. He used to 
send his parents money every year. His father, who became blind, 
did not die before his son had attained a mature age. Two brothers 
of Virgil also died before him. Poetry was not the only study of 
Virgil : he applied himself to medicine and to agriculture, as the 
Georgica show ; and also to what Donatus calls Matke?natica, per- 
haps a jumble of astrology and astronomy. His stature was tall, his 
complexion dark, and his appearance that of a rustic. He was mod- 
est and retiring, and his character is free from reproach, if we ex- 
cept one scandalous passage in Donatus, which may not tell the truth. 

In his fortunes and his friends Virgil was a happy man. Munificent 
patronage gave him ample means of enjoyment and of leisure, and he 
had the friendship of all the most accomplished men of the day, 
among whom Horace entertained a strong affection for him. He was 
an amiable good-tempered man, free from the mean passions of envy 
and jealousy ; and in all but health he was prosperous. His fame, 
which was established in his lifetime, was cherished after his death 
as an inheritance in which every Roman had a share. No writer 
probably ever exercised so wide an influence either in time or space. 
His works became school-books even before the death of Augustus, 
and have continued such ever since ; they were even translated into 
Greek ; they were commented on by a host of grammarians ; they 
were the subject of innumerable epigrams ; they were formed into cen- 
tos ; they were used for the purposes of divination. They have taken 
their place among the imperishable offspring of genius, and, while 
literature lasts, will continue to exercise a powerful influence on the 
poetical taste of successive generations. 



NOTES 



ON THE 



SELECTIONS FROM VIRGIL. 



THE BUCOLICS. 

The ten short poems called Bucolica were the earliest works of 
Virgil, and probably all written between B. C. 41, and 33. C. 37. 
They are not Bucolica in the same sense as the poems of Theocritus, 
which have the same title. They have all a Bucolic form and color- 
ing, but some of them have nothing more. Their chief merit con- 
sists in their versification, which was smoother and more polished 
than the hexameters which the Romans had yet seen, and in many 
natural and simple touches. But as an attempt to transfer the Syra- 
cusan muse into Italy, they are certainly a failure ; and we read the 
pastorals of Theocritus and of Virgil with a very different degree of 
pleasure. The former are distinguished by a simplicity equally re- 
mote from epic majesty and sordid rusticity. Every charm of the 
country has been rifled to adorn them, and almost every deformity 
carefully concealed. ' Then, too, the Doric dialect, in which they 
were written, was peculiarly adapted to pastoral poetry. It at once 
removed the reader from the town, while it afforded the Muse every 
facility of utterance. The lordly language of Imperial Rome was ill 
suited to convey the unpremeditated effusions of unlettered herds- 
men. If Virgil, therefore, has fallen very far short of his great proto- 
type, the difficulty of his attempt must not be forgotten. Indeed, he 
appears not insensible of it himself; and by the nature of the language 
in which he wrote he has been compelled to abandon his original 
intention, and to attempt loftier flights than the nature of pastoral 
poetry strictly justifies. 

The publication of the Bucolica created a great sensation in literary 
Rome. Honors were publicly lavished on the author. They were 
recited on the stage ; and it is said that, on one occasion, when the 
poet happened to be present, all the spectators rose and paid him 
the same marks of respect which they would have shown to Au- 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE I. 433 

gustus. Propertius (II. 34) has celebrated the conclusion and pub- 
lication of the Bucolics, and Ovid (Amor. I. 12) has foretold their 
immortality. 

The title Bucolica was probably that given to these poems by 
Virgil himself. It is from a Greek word which signifies pertaining 
to the shepherd life, pastoral. The title Ecloga is generally supposed 
to have been added by the critics. It also is from the Greek, and 
signifies, a selected piece ; so that Bucolicon Eclogae means, selections 
from pastoral poems* Bucolicon being the genitive plural in the Greek 
form. 



ECLOGUE I. — TITYRUS. 

The subject of this Eclogue is Virgil's gratitude to Octavianus for 
the favor shown him in the restoration of his lands. See Life. 

The speakers are two shepherds, one of whom is enjoying rustic 
life, singing of his love, and seeing his cattle feed undisturbed, when 
he is encountered by the other, who has been expelled from his home- 
stead, and is driving his goats before him, with no prospect but a 
cheerless exile. This is simple enough, but it is complicated by an 
unhappy artifice. The fortunate shepherd is represented as a farm 
slave who has just worked out his freedom ; and this emancipation is 
used to symbolize the confirmation of the poet in his property. The 
two events, with their concomitants, are treated as convertible with 
each other, the story being told partly in the one form, partly in the 
other. 

1. Tityre; a name borrowed from Theocritus. Tu . . .nos. Gr. 
446. A. & S. 209, R. 1 (b). So nos . . . tu, v. 4. — 2. Silvestrem 
Musam = a pastoral tune. The Muse is here put, by metonymy, 
for that over which she presided. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. 
Tenui . . . avena = on a slender reed-pipe. Tenui suggests the 
notion of simplicity and humility, at the same time that it is a nat- 
ural epithet of the reed, like fragili cicuta, v. 85. Avena by meton- 
ymy for fistula. Meditaris = art practising. The word implies 
care, repetition, and by some critics is translated "art composing." 
— 3. Nos. Gr. 446. 2. A. & S. 209, R. 7 {b). Patriae = of my 
paternal estate, farm. Cf. patrios fines, v. 68. — 4. Fugimus = we 
are banished from. Lentus = at ease. — 5. Formosam — silvas 
= thou teachest the woods to re-echo (the name of) the beautiful 
Amaryllis. Amaryllis is a shepherdess, beloved by Tityrus. Gr. 93. 
1 ; 374. 4. A. & S. 80. I. ; 231, R. 3 (b). — 6. Deus ; Octavianus. 
This may be mere hyperbole, though this same emperor was actually 
28 



434 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

deified, before his death, by the Roman people. Otia = peace, secu- 
rity. A. & S. 98. — 7. Mihi. Gr. 390. 2. A. & S. 222, R. 8, N. ; 
227, R. 4. Illius. Gr. 612. 3. A. & S. 283. I. Ex. 4. — 8. Im- 
buet ; sc. sanguine suo. — 9. Errare = to roam at will, to graze 
at large. It implies security. Ipsum ; sc. me, implied in meas. 
— 10. Quae vellem. Gr. 445. 6 ; 501. I. A. & S. 206 (4) ; 264- 1. 
Permisit. Gr. 551. II. 1. A. & S. 273. 4 {a). Calamo; the 
same as avena, v. 2. — 11. Invideo ; sc. tibi. Magis = rather. — 

12. Usque turbatur = to such a degree does confusion prevail ; 
i. e. caused by the veteran soldiers, who are everywhere dispossess- 
ing the people of their lands. This sentence is explanatory of the 
preceding, and the connection of thought may be thus expressed : I 
wonder rather that you enjoy such peace, since there is everywhere 
so much confusion. Ipse is contrasted with undique totis agris. — 

13. Protinus = forward, before me. Aeger = sad, sick at heart. 
It may refer also to the state of the body, as consequent upon that 
of the mind. Duco. The rest he drove before him ; this one he 
leads by a cord. — 14. Namque. A. & S. 279. 3 {a) and (e). — 

15. Silice in nuda ; i. e. with no herbage spread beneath. Con- 
nixa is put for enixa for the sake of the measure, though it has a 
rhetorical force of its own, expressing the difficulty of the labor. — 

16. Laeva = stupidly perverse. It is better to consider the 1107% 
as qualifying laeva. Cf. A. II. 54. Before si mens some such clause 
is implied as quod nos monuisset. — 17. De coelo tactas = struck 
by lightning. The striking of a person or thing by lightning was an 
omen of evil. Pomponius says, on the authority of the lost works of 
ancient Grammarians, that the blasting of fruit-trees was ominous : 
that of the olive being supposed to forebode barrenness ; that of the 
oak, banishment. This would make the malum hoc to be Meliboeus's 
exile, not the loss of the goat's twins. Memini. A. & S. 268, R. 
1 {a). Z. 589. Praedicere = portended, foreboded. — 18. Prae- 
dixit ; sc. malum hoc. This line is generally regarded as spurious. 
It is made up from IX. 15. — 19. Sed tamen. These particles in- 
dicate a stronger opposition than the simple sed or tamen, and mark 
a return to a previous thought from which the speaker has digressed. 
Here they recall the mind to the words of Tityrus, vv. 6-10, from 
which Meliboeus had turned aside to speak of himself. Cf. G. I. 79. 
Iste = that of yours. Gr. 450. A. & S. 207, R. 25. Sit. Gr. 525. 
A. & S. 265. Da . . . nobis = tell me. — 20. Urbem. Instead of 
answering directly, Tityrus begins ab ovo, in rustic fashion, and di- 
lates upon the description of Rome itself. — 21. Huic nostrae ; 
i. e. Mantua, which was about three miles from Andes, Virgil's native 
village. Quo = whither. — 22. Pastores. Gr. 363. 2. A. & S. 
204, R. 4. Depellere = to drive away. The de denotes destina- 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE I. 435 

tion, not descent, as Andes was not on a hill. Cf. deducere, demittere 
naves (in portum), etc. Fetus. A. & S. 323. 2 (4). — 24. Com- 
ponere = to compare. — 26. Lenta viburna = pliant shrubs. 
The viburnum is a low, flexible shrub. It was used for binding 
fagots. Tityrus means to say, in effect, that he found the difference 
between Rome and Mantua to be one, not of degree merely, but of 
kind. 

27. Et sometimes introduces a question with emphasis, marking 
the curiosity and wonder of the speaker. Romam. Gr. 559. A. & S. 
275. 1. Tibi. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. — 28. Libertas. A. & S. 204, 
R. 11. Sera; sc. quidem. The omission of quamquam or quidem 
before tamen is not uncommon. Respexit. Libertas is here per- 
sonified ; hence the appropriateness of the word respexit. Iner- 
tem (sc. me) = indolent, neglectful ; i. e. to save his little gains with 
which to purchase his freedom. It was for this that slaves saved 
their peculiu?n (see on v. 33) ; and of course the less inertes they were, 
the sooner they got the necessary sum. Tityrus, a farm-slave, having 
saved enough, goes up to buy his freedom from his owner, and the 
owner of the estate, who is living at Rome. Nothing can be less 
happy than this allegory in itself except the way in which it is intro- 
duced in the midst of the reality — the general expulsion of the shep- 
herds, and the exemption of Tityrus through the divine interposition 
of Octavianus — which ought to appear through the allegory and not 
by the side of it. — 29. Candidior = growing gray. In v. 47 
Tityrus is called senex. Tondenti; sc. mihi. Gr. 571 ; 578. A. & S. 
274 2 and 3 (a). Manumitted persons were accustomed to shave their 
beards, which, while slaves, they had permitted to grow. — 30. Longo 
tempore ; i. e. a long time compared with the much shorter time in 
which slaves were accustomed to obtain their freedom. — 31. Post- 
quam — reliquit = since Amaryllis is holding possession of me 
(i. e. of my affections), (and) Galatea left me ; i. e. since I got rid of 
the extravagant Galatea and took to the thrifty Amaryllis. These were 
doubtless successive partners ( ' contubernales ) of the slave Tityrus. 
Note the difference of the tenses joined with postquam in vv. 29, 31 : 
cadebat, a continuing act now completed ; kabet, an act still continuing ; 
reliquit, an act completed at once. — 33. Peculi. Gr. 45. 5. 1). 
A. & S. 52 ; 322. 5. The peculium was the property acquired by a 
slave, which his master permitted him to consider as his own. — 
34. Multa . . . victima = many a victim ; used poetically for mul- 
tae victimae. Z. 109, N. Saeptis = enclosures, folds. — 35. The 
position of pinguis before et indicates that it is specially emphatic. 
Ingratae ; because it did not pay him for his trouble so much as he 
thought it ought. — 36. Tityrus blames the unthrift of Galatea and 
his own recklessness, which made him too careless about making 



436 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

money by his produce, though he took it from time to time to Man- 
tua. To suppose that he squandered his earnings directly on Galatea 
would not be quite consistent with the blame thrown on the town, 
v. 35. — 37. Quid. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 235, R. 11. Amarylli. 
Gr. 94. A. & S. 81, R. — 38. Sua — in arbore = (each) on its 
own tree. Cf. VII. 54. G. II. 82 and A. VI. 206. Amaryllis in her 
sorrow had forgotten her careful habits. She left the fruit hanging 
for Tityrus as if no hand but his ought to gather it. — 39, 40. Aberat. 
The final syllable is made long by caesura. Gr. 669. V. A. & S. 309. 
2 (1). Ipsae=the very. Pinus . . . fontes . . . arbusta. These 
called him back, because, depending on his care, they suffered from 
his absence. Virgil doubtless meant the passage as a piece of rustic 
banter. —41. Facerem. Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 260, R. 5. — 41. 
Praesentes = powerful to aid. See on Ov. M. III. 658, and cf. M. 
IV. 612. Alibi belongs also to v. 41. Cognoscere = to find : lit. 
to become acquainted with. — 43. Juvenem ; Octavianus. He was 
now in his twenty-third year. See on Hor. C. I. 2. 41. Cf. G. I. 500. 
44. Bis senos . . . dies ; i. e. twelve days in the year, probably once 
a month. — Nostra. Gr. 446. 2. A. & S. 209, R. 7 {b). — 45. Re- 
sponsum . . . dedit ; i. e. as a god to those who consult his oracle. 
Primus denotes the anxiety with which the response was sought ; it 
does not imply that any one else could have given it. The sense may 
be expressed thus : it was here that he gave me my first assurance. — 
46. Pueri = servi. Submittite = produce, rear. — 47. Tua is a 
predicate, like magna, and emphatic, suggesting a contrast between 
his lot and that of his neighbors. Quamvis — junco = although 
naked stones (lit. stone) cover it all, and pools overspread with slimy 
rushes the pasture grounds. Palus is probably the overflowing 
of the Mincius. Cf. VII. 13. Omnia must mean the whole farm, 
while the latter part of the description applies only to the pascua. 
— 50. Non — fetas (sc. pecudes) ■= no unusual food shall injure (lit. 
attack, i. e. with disease) thy pregnant ewes. Graves— gravidas, in 
A. I. 274. — 51. Mala = malignant. — 52. Flumina may be the 
Mincio and the Po, or the smaller streams in the neighborhood. — 
53. Fontes are called sacros, because each had its divinity. Cf. 
Hor. C. I. 1. 22 and note. — 54. Hinc susurro. Construe thus: 
Hinc, ab vicino limite, saepes Hyblaeis apibus Jlorem salicti depasta, 
saepe tibi levi susurro suadebit, quae semper, somnum inire. Vicino ab 
limite is explanatory of hinc, and with hinc = on this side, namely, 
on the side of the neighboring boundary. Cf. III. 12, hie — fagos ; A. 
II. 18, hue . . . caeco lateri. Quae semper is an elliptical relative 
clause in the sense of ut semper, like quae proximo, litora, A. I. 157, 
and = as it has ever done. Quae then will be used here for the 
corresponding adverb quemadmodum, like quo, A. I. 8, for quomodo, 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE I. 437 

and siquem, A. I. 18 1, for sicubi. Hyblaeis; merely an ornamental 
epithet derived from Hybla, a mountain in Sicily famous for its bees 
and honey. Florem depasta = fed upon as to the flower of the 
willow. Gr. 380 and 1. A. & S. 234. II. and R. 1 and 2. Salicti; 
abbreviated from saliceti, used poetically for salicis. Gr. 317 and 2. 
A. & S. 100. 7. The susurrus comes partly from the bees, partly 
from the leaves. 57. Hinc is opposed to hinc in v. 54, and is more 
nearly defined by alta sub rupe. Canet ad auras = shall fill the 
air with his song : lit. shall sing to the breezes. Cf. A. VI. 561, 
plangor ad auras. The description points to the month of August, 
from the mention not only of the frondatio, but of the cooing of the 
wood-pigeons during incubation. Pliny makes the latter a sign 
that autumn is coming on. — 58. Tua cura = thy delight. — 59. 
Gemere = to coo. Turtur. The Romans kept turtle-doves on 
their farms. — 60. Ante = sooner. It, with the ante in v. 62, 
which is only a repetition of it, is the correlative of quant in v. 64. 
Ergo expresses the ground of his obligations to his master ; namely, 
the favor conferred upon him. Destituent nudos = shall leave 
bare ; i. e. fishes shall live on dry ground. — 62. Pererratis = su- 
peratis. The meaning is, sooner shall the Parthians and the Ger- 
mans change places, each passing to the country of the other ; but 
this they can never do, since the territory of the Romans intervenes, 
whom they must first conquer. Amborum = of both (nations). 
Exsul bibet = as an exile shall drink; i. e. shall make his home 
there. — 63. Ararim. The Arar (now Saone) is a river of Gaul, 
not of Germany ; its source, however, in the high land connected 
with the Vosges ( Vogesus) is not very far from Alsace, which was 
then, as now, inhabited by Germans. The ancients, moreover, some- 
times confounded the Germans and the Celts. Gr. 85. III. 1. A. & S. 
79. 1. Parthus. The Parthians were a very warlike people of 
Scythian origin, and occupied a large district southeast of the Cas- 
pian Sea. But see on Hor. C. I. 2.22. Germauia; by metonymy 
for Germani. See on Musam, v. 2. — 64. Illius. See on v. 43. 
Labatur = shall pass away, be effaced. — 65. Nos. Gr. 446. A. & S. 
209, R. 1 (b ). Nos . . . alii . . . pars. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204, R. 10. 
Afros ; by metonymy for Africa. Gr. 379. 4. A. & S. 237, R. 5 (a). 
— 66. Et . . . et correspond to the preceding alii . . .pars, and are equiv- 
alent to alii . . . alii. Cretae ; a large island (now Candia) in the Med- 
iterranean Sea, south of Greece. Oaxen. Of the Oaxes of Crete noth- 
ing is known. — 68-70. En . . . aristas = indeed, shall I ever, a long 
time afterwards, beholding (again) my paternal fields and the roof of 
my poor cottage built of turf, my (former) domain, (shall I ever) here- 
after see with wonder a few scattering ears of corn ? The cause of 
wonder is the scantiness of the crop compared with the abundance 



438 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

of former years. En in interrogations adds earnestness and empha- 
sis. Tuguri. Gr. 45. 5. 1). A. & S. 52 ; 322. 5. Post (=posthac) is a 
repetition of longo post tempore. Mea regno, we prefer to consider in 
apposition to fines and culmen. — 71. Novalia ; properly either fal- 
low grounds, or grounds ploughed for the first time, but here = 
fields. — 72. Barbarus, alluding to the Gauls and other barbarians 
in the Roman armies. Quo . . . produxit = to what a point . . . 
has brought. — 73. Quis = quibus. Gr. 187. 1. A. & S. 136, R. 2. 
— 74. Insere nunc = graft now. Said ironically to himself. — 76. 
Viridi = green (with moss). — 77. Pendere . . . de rupe ; i. e. 
as they would appear on the hillside in the distance. — 78. Me 
pascente ; i. e. me pastore. — 79. Cytisus is the arborescent lucerne, 
which is common in Greece and Italy, and a favorite food of cattle 
and bees. — 80. Poteras = you might as well, you had best. Gr. 
475. A. & S. 259, R. 3 and (b) ; Z. 518. It seems more pressing 
than the present. As Meliboeus now begins to resume his journey 
{tie capellae, v. 75), Tityrus calls to him and urges him to stop and 
spend the night with him. — 81. Nobis. Gr. 446. 2 ; 387. A. & S. 
210, R. 3 (1) ; 226. — 82. Molles = mealy ; i. e. when they are 
roasted. Pressi lactis = cheese. Cf. v. 35. — 83. Culmina fu- 
mant ; i. e. announcing supper-time. 



ECLOGUE III. — PALAEMON. 

This Eclogue is principally occupied by a contest in poetical skill 
between two shepherds, Menalcas and Damon. Such contests, — 
still not uncommon among the improvisatori of Italy, — were carried 
on in verses, called carmen amoebaeum (rendered by Virgil altemis, 
or alternis versibus, v. 59, VII. 18), answering alternately. And in 
them no sequence of ideas was necessary on the part of the chal- 
lenger, but the party challenged was bound to exceed in language 
or ideas the thoughts first expressed. 

1 - 31. M. Whom are you keeping sheep for ? D. Aegon. M. 
Poor sheep ! their owner is hopelessly in love, and his hireling steals 
the milk. D. As if you had any right to taunt me ! M. Of course 
not ; I cut Micon's vines. D. Broke Daphnis's bow and arrows, you 
mean. M. Well, I saw you steal Damon's goat. D. It was mine ; 
I won it at a singing match. M. You ! when you can 't sing. D. 
I '11 sing against you now for a calf. 

1. Damoeta. Gr. 43. A. & S. 44. Cujum. Gr. 188. 4. A. & S. 
137. 5. The question implies that Damoetas is a mere hireling. An 
implies some such previous question as, num est alius. Gr. 346. 2. 4. 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE III. 439 

A. & S. 198. 11, R. (d). — 2. Tradidit = intrusted. — 3. Pecus. 
Gi\ 363. A. & S. 204. Ipse; Aegon. — 4. Fovet = courts. — 5. 
Alienus . . . custos = hireling keeper ; i. e. Damoetas. Bis — in 
hora. Twice a day would have been often enough. The phrase is 
of course exaggerated ; but secret milking was a common offence, 
punished by Justinian with whipping and loss of wages. — 6. Sucus. 
= strength, vigor. — Pecori. Gr. 385. A. & S. 224, R. 2. — 7. Ista 
= these reproaches of thine. — Viris is emphatic ; men, worthy of 
the name. — Tamen involves a tacit admission that the charges are 
true ; yet, says Damoetas, they come with an ill grace from one no 
better than you. — 8. Qui te ; sc. cor* uperit, or some such word. 
Transversa = askance. The neuter plural of the adjective used ad- 
verbially. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 10. — 9. Quo ... sacello = in 
what cave ; i. e. a cave sacred to the nymphs. Faciles = easy, good- 
natured ; because they did not punish him for the profanation of their 
abode. — 10. Turn ; sc. risere. Credo. Ironical. Menalcas affects 
to charge himself with what Damoetas did. — Arbustum, properly 
a vineyard in which the vines were trained on trees, is here the trees 
themselves. — 11. Mala = malicious. The laws of the Twelve Tables 
imposed a heavy fine for cutting another man's trees. — Novellas is 
emphatic, as the young vines ought not to have been pruned at all. 
Cf. G. II. 365. — 12. Hie ; sc. risere. Damoetas recriminates. — Ad 
veteres fagos is a more exact definition of hie. See on I. 54, 57. 
— 13. Calamos = arrows. Gr. 705. III. A. & S. 324. 3. Quae; 
i.e. arcum et calamos. Gr. 439. 3. A. & S. 205, R. 2 (2) N. — 14. 
Puero ; Daphnis. — 15. Aliqua = in some way. — 16. Quid — 
fures = what would masters do when thievish servants are so dar- 
ing ? Fures is comic for servi. The subj. faciant suggests, " What 
would they do if they were to come on the scene ? " the case being a 
supposed one, the substitution of Aegon for Damoetas. Talia, then, 
refers to what precedes. — 18. Excipere = catch. Lycisca ; the 
name of a dog. — 19. Quo — ille = what now is yonder rogue dart- 
ing at ? More lit., whither now does that fellow rush forth ? Gr. 450. 
A. & S. 207, R. 23 (a). Damoetas was just rushing out of his ambus- 
cade. — 20. Tityre ; Damon's shepherd. Coge. The flock was 
straying in supposed security. Carecta = the rushes ; properly a 
place covered with rushes. Gr. 317 and 2. A. & S. 100. 7. — 21. An. 
Gr. 346. 2. 4). A. & S. 198. 11, R. (d). An implies some such pre- 
vious question as, Did I not have a right to the goat ? Non — ille 
= was not that one to deliver, to hand over ? Gr. 485. A. & S. 260, 
R. 5. — 22. Quem . . . caprum. Gr. 445, 8. A. & S. 206 (3) [b). 
Carminibus = by its strains ; referring to the interludes played be- 
tween the parts of the song. — 23. Si nescis = ;// hoc scias, if you did 
but know it. — 24. Reddere — negabat; since it would be a con- 



44° NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

fession that he was defeated. — 25. Tu ilium ; sc. vicisse te ais. 
The fistula, or shepherd's pipe, was constructed either of cane 
(arundo), reed (calamus), or hemlock (cicuta). In general seven 
hollow stems of these plants, cut to the proper lengths and adjusted 
so as to form an octave, were fitted together by means of wax. — 
26. In triviis ; i. e. to vulgar ears. Trivium, a place where three 
roads meet, came to mean any place of public resort, especially for 
the lower orders. — 27. Stridenti = stridula. Miserum . . . dis- 
perdere carmen = to murder a wretched strain. The tune was a 
bad one, and vilely played at that. Stipula is a single reed, opposed 
to fistula cera juncta. — 28. Vis implies a challenge, while visne 
simply asks for information. Inter nos . . . vicissim. The former 
expresses that there is to be a contest, the latter refers to the kind of 
contest ; i. e. amoebean. Possit = can do. — 29. Experiamur. 
Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. Vitulam =juvencam. Recuses. 
Gr. 489 and I. A. & S. 262. — 31. Depono = lay down as a wager, 
stake. — Quo — certes = with what wager thou wilt contend. Gr. 
525. A. & S. 265. Quo pigiiore may be taken as an ablative of man- 
ner, or, which is really the same thing, as an ablative absolute. Gr. 
430. A. & S. 257, R. 7. — 32. Non ausim=I dare not. Gr. 239. 
4 ; 485. A. & S. 162. 9 ; 260, R. 4. Tecum = like you ; i. e. as 
you have done. — 33. Mini. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Injusta = 
harsh, severe. The word belongs to both pater and noverca. See on 
Hor. C. I. 2. 1. — 34. Bisque die ; i. e. both morning and evening. 
Alter = one or the other. — 35. Id refers to pocula. Tute. Gr. 184. 
3. A. & S. 133, R. 2. — 36. Pocula . . . fagina = a pair of beechen 
cups. Drinking-cups were usually in pairs, one for wine and one for 
water. See v. 44. Ponam = deponam. — 37. Alcimedontis. 
Alcimedon is nowhere else mentioned. — 38. Quibus — superad- 
dita = superadded to which by the skilfully handled graving tool. 
Quibus ; sc. poculis. Torno ; lit. the lathe, for scalpro. — 39. Diffusos 
— corymbos = covers (with its foliage) the scattered clustering ber- 
ries of the yellow ivy. Both the vine and the ivy were emblems of 
Bacchus, and so fit ornaments for a drinking cup. Hedera pallente is 
probably for hederae pallentis, a use of the material ablative for the 
genitive not uncommon in Virgil. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. Some 
connect the ablative with diffusos. 

40. In medio ; i. e. in the space enclosed by the vine and ivy. So 
in v. 46. Conon: a famous astronomer in the time of Ptolemy 
Philadelphus, B. C. 283 - 222. Alter. The other, whose name the 
shepherd forgets, was probably Eudoxus, a celebrated astronomer 
of Cnidus, who lived about B. C. 366. — 41. Radio ; the rod with 
which the geometrician drew his diagrams upon the sand. Cf. A. 
VI. 851. Totum . . . orbem = the whole circle (of the heavens). 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE III. 441 

Gentibus = for mankind. — 42. Tempora quae = (showing) what 
seasons. Curvus; i. e. bending over the plough. Haberet = 
should observe. — 45. Molli == flexible. — 46. Orphea. Gr. 46. 3. 5). 
A. & S. 54. 5 and 86. See on Ovid, M. X. Introduction, p. 415. — 
48. Si — spectas = if thou (once) lookest at the heifer ; i. e. com- 
pared with the heifer, the cups deserve no praise. Gr. 669. I. A. & S. 
305 (4). Nihil . . . laudes. Gr. 501. I. 1. A. & S. 264. 7 and N. 
3. — 49. Menalcas, in his turn, insinuates that Damoetas wishes to 
get off. Veniam ; i. e. I will come to your terms, whatever they 
may be. — 50. Audeat. Gr. 488. I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Vel — 
Palaemon. Vel goes rather with qui venit than Palaemon. Me- 
nalcas begins as if he wished for some particular arbiter, but corrects 
himself, and offers to take the chance of a man just then approach- 
ing, whom he identifies at the end of the verse as Palaemon : " The 
man who is coming up — there! it is Palaemon." — 51. Posthac; 
with lacessas. Voce lacessas = challenge in singing ; i. e. chal- 
lenge to sing. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 52. Quin age = come 
on then. Si quid habes = if thou hast anything (to sing), if thou 
canst sing at all. Cf. IX. 32 ; V. 10. — 53. Nee — fugio = nor do I 
shun any one. Some critics make quemquam mean any opponent ; 
others, any judge. — 54. Sensibus haec imis = these things (i. e. 
which we are about to sing) in thy deepest thoughts. Res — parva 
refers to the importance of the contest rather than to the value of 
the wager, as some make it. Reponas. Gr. 488. I. A. & S. 260, 
R. 6. — 55. Dicite = canite, as often. — 56, 57. Et — annus. Cf. 
G. II. 323, 330. Annus for anni temptis, the season of the year. — 
58. Deinde. Gr. 669. II. A. & S. 306. 1 and (1). — 59. Alter- 
nis = responsively. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247. 2. Alterna = 
responsive songs. Camenae; Latin deities nearly identical with 
the Muses of the Greeks. — 60. Ab — principium (sc. meicarminis 
sit) ; i. e. I begin with celebrating the praises of Jupiter. Musae is 
the vocative. — 61. Colit = fertilizes. Cf. G. II. 325, 326, and see 
on Hor. C. I. 1. 25. Illi — curae ; i.e. because Jupiter cares for 
the earth, and renders it fruitful, therefore those who cultivate the 
earth, and shepherds and their songs, are pleasing to him. Gr. 390. 
A. & S. 227. — 62. Phoebus. Menalcas replies : Apollo, the 
poet's patron, is my friend : for him I rear bays and hyacinths in my 
garden. Phoebo. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Sua ; i. e. which are 
pleasing to him. Gr. 449. 2. A. & S. 208 (8). — 63. Suave = 
suaviter. Gr. 335. 4 1). A. & S. 205, R. 10. — 64. Malo me 
petit = throws an apple at me. Apples were sacred to Venus ; 
whence, to throw an apple at one was a mode of flirting. — 65. Se 
cupit videri. Gr. 551. II. 1. . A. & S. 271, R. 4. Ante = before 
(she hides herself). — 66. Ignis = beloved. Cf. the English flame. 



442 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

— 67. Delia is Menalcas's mistress. Damoetas had boasted that he 
was beloved by Galatea. Menalcas replies that he is beloved by two 
persons, and that they each come so often to his cottage that they are 
no longer barked at by his dogs. —68. Veneri = beloved. Nota- 
vi = I observed. — 69. Ipse denotes that he has observed it himself, 
so that he will be sure to remember it. Aeriae = high in air. Cf. 
I. 59. Congessere ; for nidum congessere, as we say " to build." 
Palumbes. Wood-pigeons were sacred to Venus. — 70. Quod 
potui = what I could ; i. e. since I had to pick them from the lofty 
branches of the tree. The expression corresponds to aeriae, both 
denoting difficulty. It is explanatory of the following sentence. Gr. 
445. 7. A. & S. 206. 13 {a). Puero; Amyntas. Gr. 384. 2. 1). 
A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. Silvestri — lecta = picked from a tree in 
the wood. — 71. Aurea; i. e. ripe. Altera (sc. decern) = a second ten. 

— 73. Partem aliquem = some small part ; since even. that would 
charm the gods themselves. Divum. Gr. 45. 5. 4). A. & S. 53. 
Referatis. Gr. 488. I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. — 74. Quid. Gr. 380. 2. 
A. & S. 232 (3). Quod— servo. He complains that he is sepa- 
rated from Amyntas, who takes the more attractive and dangerous 
part of the adventure ; and this is opposed to ipse — spernis. " What 
is your affection to me if you will not give me your company ? " Servo 
= observo ; i. e. to watch for game. — 76. Phyllida. Gr. 93. 1. 
A. & S. 80. 1. Phyllis seems to be either the female slave or mistress 
of Iollas, whom we may suppose to be a neighboring farmer who has 
joined the company since the musical contest began. Natalis. The 
birthday was a season for merry-making and love ; whereas the fes- 
tival, called Ambarvalia, referred to by quu??i — frugibus, was a time 
of abstinence from such pleasures. When this shall arrive, he de- 
risively invites Iollas to come himself. On the occasion of this fes- 
tival (G. I. 338-350) the victim to be sacrificed was led three times 
round the cornfields before the sickle was put to the corn. It was 
accompanied by a crowd of merry-makers, the reapers and farm ser- 
vants dancing and singing the praises of Ceres, and praying for her 
favor and presence, while they offered her the libations of milk, honey, 
and wine. This festival took place towards the end of April, when 
the harvest in Italy began. — 78. Menalcas retorts in the person of 
Iollas. Me— flevit. Gr. 551. III. A. & S. 273. 5, N. 7.-79. 
Longum = in prolonged accents. Longum goes with inquit rather 
than vale, denoting reluctance to part. Vale, vale. Gr. 669. I. 2 
and IV. A. & S. 305. 1 and (2). — 80. Triste. Gr. 438. 4 ; 441. 
A. & S. 204, R. 9 ; 205, R. 7 (2). So dulce, v. 82. Cf. A. IV. 569. Da- 
moetas says, " everything in nature has its bane : mine is the wrath of 
Amaryllis." Menalcas replies, "everything in nature has its delight : 
mine is Amyntas." It will be observed that Damoetas continually 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE III. 443 

changes the subject. — 82. Depulsis (sc. a lade) = weaned. Cf. VII. 
15. — 83. Salix. Cf. I. 79.-84. Pollio (C. Asinius), a distin- 
guished orator, poet, and historian. He was the friend and patron of 
Virgil and Horace and other great writers, and was the first to found 
a public library at Rome. He also had great reputation as a critic. 
" Pollio," says Damoetas, " is my patron, and the prince of critics." 
" Pollio is more," replies Menalcas, striving to outdo his rival, " he is 
the prince of poets." Musam = song, poetry. Cf. I. 2. — 85. 
Pierides = Muses. See on Ov. M. V. Introduction, p. 403. Vitu- 
lam . . . taurum. These may be the prizes of different kinds of 
poetry, the value of the prize rising with the rise from critic and pa- 
tron to poet. Some, however, regard them as sacrifices for Pollio's 
welfare. Lectori ; Pollio. Vestro ; because you (the Muses) in- 
spire the verses which he reads. — 86. Nova carmina. Some 
understand these words to refer to tragedies of a new kind ; i. e. 
whose subjects were not borrowed from the Greek, but taken from 
Roman story. Nova may, however, mean original ; or it may merely 
carry out the notion of ipse ; he makes verses himself, is a poet as 
well as a critic. Others, with Heyne, make nova = unrivalled, match- 
less. — 87. Qui . . . petat . . . spargat. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264 
1 (b). The relative clauses denote the age of the bull. — 88. Veniat 
— gaudet = may he attain to (the same happy lot) which he rejoices 
that thou also (hast reached). Te ; sc. pervenisse. Some critics 
understand the happiness to be that of political preferment, others of 
poetic renown ; but it would seem from v. 89 that the allusion is to 
the golden age (cf. IV. 25-30 ; G. I. 131 ; Ov. M. I. 89 foil.) ; and 
that the wish is that Pollio's admirers may enjoy with him the same 
dreamy felicity of the golden age that he enjoys. — 89. Amomum ; 
a fragrant oriental shrub ; also the balsam made from it. Here it is 
the latter ; in IV. 25, the former. — 90. Bavium; i.e. his poems. 
Bavius and Maevius were envious poetasters who attacked Virgil and 
Horace. Amet. Gr. 367. 2. A. & S. 209, R. 2, N. 3. Tua — 
Maevi. It is intimated that Maevius is a worse poet even than 
Bavius. Gr. 45. 5. 2). A. & S. 52. — 91. Jungat ; i. e. for ploughing. 
Jungere vulpes and mulgere hircos appears to be a sort of comic pur- 
gatory opposed to the paradise of v. 89. — 93. Frigidus — herba. 
Gr. 672. 2. A. & S. 310. 2. — 94. Parcite = nolite. Non bene 
creditur = it is not safe to trust. — 95. Ipse ; i. e. though the most 
wary of the flock. — 96. Tityre. See on v. 20. Pascentes ; i. e. 
qua pascuntur. Reice ; poetical for rejice. Gr. 669. II. A. & S. 
283. IV. N. 1 ; 306. 1. — 98. Cogite oves = drive the sheep (in- 
to the shade) ; to shelter them from the midday heat. Praece- 
perit = shall have dried up ; i. e. before the time of milking. — 
100. Quam with macer. Pingui == making fat, nutritious. Ervo; 



444 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

a species of tare. — 101. Exitium pecori. Gr. 390. 2. A. & S. 
227, R. 4. — 102. His; sc. agnis, Neque = etiam non, ne . . . qui- 
dem. — 103. Nescio quis . . . oculus = some (evil) eye. — 104- 
107. D. "Guess my riddle, and you shall be my Apollo." M. "Guess 
mine, and you shall have Phyllis to yourself." — 104. Apollo was 
the god of divination. Mihi. Gr. 390. 2. A. & S. 227, R. 4. — 
105. Tres — ulnas. According to Servius, Asconius Pedianus heard 
Virgil say that he had intended in this passage to set a trap for the 
critics ; and that the real answer was the tomb of Coelius, a M antuan 
who had squandered his estate, and left himself only land enough for 
a tomb. This traditional solution is now generally followed, though 
various others have been proposed ; such as a well, an oven, the 
shield of Achilles, the pit called mundus in the Comitium, which was 
opened but three days each year. Coeli, the poetical form of the geni- 
tive of Coelius, is the same as the genitive of coelum, heaven ; but in 
the absence of certain knowledge on the subject, we cannot do better 
than translate it as the latter. Amplius ulnas. Gr. 417. 3 ; 378. 
A. & S. 256, R. 6 {a) and {b) ; 236. — 106. Inscripti nomina 
regum = having the names of princes inscribed upon them ; lit. 
inscribed as to the names of princes. Gr. 380 and 1. A. & S. 234. 
II. The flower meant is the hyacinth, which was inscribed with Ai', Ai' 
( alas ! alas ! ) to express the grief of Apollo at the death of Hya- 
cinthus, whom he accidentally killed with a quoit, or, as others say, 
to express the name of Ajax (AXas), of which they are the first two 
letters ; or according to others, with the letter Y for 'Yanivdos (Hya- 
cinthus). — 108. Non nostrum (sc. est) = it is not in my power. 
Gr. 404. 1. A. & S. 211, R. 8 (3) {a). Componere = to decide. — 
109. Vitula. Gr. 419. IV. A. & S. 244. Both ultimately wagered 
a heifer. See v. 49. Quisquis — amaros. This is obscure, but the 
general sense no doubt is, as Serv. says, et tu et hie digni estis vitula et 
quicumque similis vestri est; i.e. any one who can feel love as you 
have shown you can, the alarm which attends its enjoyment, and the 
pangs of disappointment. — 111. Rivos = the sluices. This verse 
admits of either a literal or a metaphorical interpretation. Accord- 
ing to the former, Palaemon had gone into the fields in order to direct 
his slaves to open the sluices for irrigating his grounds, when he was 
called upon by the two shepherds to act as umpire in their singing 
match ; and now that the contest has ended, he turns his attention to 
the slaves and tells them to close the sluices. According to the latter, 
the allusion is to the stream of bucolic verse. The two interpreta- 
tions may be combined, and the passage may be understood in both 
senses. 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE IV. 445 



ECLOGUE IV. — POLLIO. 

In the multitude of conjectures regarding the subject of this 
Eclogue, Wagner's views seem preferable. All Italy had been ex- 
posed to dreadful calamities ; first, from the division of the lands, 
spoken of in the first Eclogue ; then, from the quarrels between An- 
tony and Octavianus, and the war which ensued, B. C. 41 ; and 
finally, from a most severe famine, the result of the blockade formed 
by the fleets of Antony and Sex. Pompeius. So much the greater 
was the joy occasioned by the treaty of Brundisium, made in the 
autumn of B. C. 40, by which harmony was restored between the 
two contending chiefs. Antony's agent in arranging the peace was 
Virgil's patron, Asinius Pollio. A little afterwards, on his return to 
Rome, Pollio entered on the consulship, and about the same time 
had a son born to him. There was a common belief at the time that 
a new age was dawning on the world ; and as Italy seemed to have 
escaped from its miseries chiefly through the means of Pollio, Virgil, 
in this Eclogue, congratulates him on his consulship, and does it in 
such a way, as at once to extol him as the harbinger of a new era of 
happiness, and at the same time to augur this, from the birth of his 
son, as an omen of future peace and prosperity. The coincidence 
between Virgil's language and that of the Old Testament prophets in 
relation to the coming of the Messiah is sufficiently striking ; but it 
may be doubted whether Virgil uses any image to which a classical 
parallel cannot be found. This Eclogue was written in the autumn 
of B. C. 40. 

1. Sicelides = Sicilian ; i. e. of Theocritus, pastoral. The- 
ocritus (see Introduction to Bucolics) was a Sicilian. Majora = 
loftier themes ; i. e. than the usual subjects of pastoral song. A. & S. 
256, R. 9 {a). — 2. Arbusta . . . myricae ; emblems of the lower 
strain of rural poetry. — 3. Silvae is used for pastoral poetry, and 
symbolizes the genus of which myricae is the species. If my theme 
is still to be pastoral, let it rise to the dignity of which a consul need 
not be ashamed. — 4, 5. Ultima — Ordo. The reference is to the 
Platonic year, a vast period of time, variously estimated by the an- 
cients, but now calculated to require about 26,000 years for its com- 
pletion, when all the heavenly bodies occupy the same places which 
they did at the beginning of the world. In each of these periods it 
was supposed that the cycle of mundane and human history repeated 
itself. It was divided into four eras, or ages, styled the golden, the 
silver, the brazen, and the iron age : the first being the purest and 
happiest, and the last the most degenerate and corrupt. (See Ov. 



446 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

M. I. Introduction, p. 369.) A series of these ages had, according 
to poetic legends, now nearly elapsed, and it had been predicted by 
the Cumaean Sibyl that the great order was to begin anew {ab in- 
tegro), the golden age returning first. — 4. Cumaei . . . carminis 
= of the Sibylline prophecy ; the Sibyl of Cumae in Italy being the 
most famous, and delivering her oracles in verse. — 5. Saeclorum. 
Gr. 703. 2. A. & S. 322. 4. — 6. Redit — regna = ^ Virgo et 
Saturnia regna redeunt. The repetition of a noun or verb is some- 
times equivalent to a repetition of the copulative. Virgo ; i. e. As- 
traea, or Justitia = Justice. She was a daughter of Jupiter and 
Themis. See on Ov. M. I. 150, and cf. G. II. 474. Regna. See 
on Ov. M. I. 113. — 7. Nova progenies = a new race; i. e. a bet- 
ter race : called in v. 9 gens aurea. — 8. Tu — puero . . . fave = 
do thou only favor the birth of the boy. See Introduction. Quo = 
under whom. Gr. 426. 1. A. & S. 257, R. 9 (2) ; or 253. Primum 
= at last. Cf. I. 45. — 10. Lucina ; the goddess who presided over 
childbirth. She is sometimes the same as Juno, and sometimes, as 
here, Diana, whom the Romans identified with the Greek Artemis, 
the sister of Apollo ; hence tuus Apollo. Cf. Hor. C. S. 14-16. 
Tuus ; sc. frater. Apollo is here the same as Phoebus ; i. e. Sol, the 
Sun. See on Ov. M. II. 116. According to the Sibylline verses, 
Apollo, i. e. the Sun, was to reign during the last or iron age, after 
which the cycle was to begin anew with the golden age. — 11. 
Adeo, especially with pronouns, gives a rhetorical prominence to 
the word after which it is used, and can be best rendered by laying a 
vocal stress on that word. Here the emphasis is increased by the 
repetition of te. Decus hoc aevi = this glorious age. Inibit = 
shall commence. — 12. Magni — menses ; the periods into which the 
magnus annus, i. e. the magnus saeclorum ordo, was divided. Some 
explain it by illustres, memorabiles, as belonging to the golden age. — 
13. Te duce = under thy guidance, auspices ; i. e. as consul. 
Sceleris ; i. e. of the bloody civil wars which were terminated about 
this time by the peace of Brundusium. — 14. Irrita = completely 
effaced, removed. Formidine ; i. e. of the vengeance of the gods 
for the scelus. — 15. Ille ; the puer of v. 8. Accipiet = shall 
participate in, be the recipient of, enjoy. Divis. Gr. 385. 5. A. & S. 
245. II. 2 and R. 1. Videbit and videbitur express that familiar 
intercourse with the gods on earth which was one of the character- 
istics of the golden age. — 16. Heroas. Gr. 98. A. & S. 86. Illis. 
Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 225. II. — 17. Patriis virtutibus follows 
reget. — 18 - 47. The coming of the golden age will be gradual, 
its stages corresponding to those in the life of the child. Thus its 
infancy is signalized by the production of natural gifts and the re- 
moval of natural evils (vv. 18-25) ; in its youth the vegetable world 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE IV. 447 

will actually change its nature (vv. 26 - 36) ; in its manhood the 
change will extend to the animals (vv. 37-47). Further, the par- 
ticular changes would seem to be adapted to the successive require- 
ments of the child. There are toys and milk for its childhood, which 
is to be specially guarded from harm ; stronger food for its youth, 
which is not to be without adventure and military glory ; quiet and 
prosperous luxury for its mature age. — 18. At = moreover, and. 
It does not here mark opposition, but simply a transition to a new 
subject. Prima =primo = at first. Nullo — cultii = spontane- 
ously. On all these characteristics of the golden age of. Ov. M. I. 
89- 112. Munuscula = small gifts ; i. e. for children. They are 
specified in the verses which follow. — 19. Errantes = spreading ; 
i. e. with luxuriance. Passim ; with fundet. What now grows only 
in certain places will then grow everywhere. Bacchare. It is not 
certain what plant is meant. It had a fragrant root from which an 
oil was extracted. — 20. Colocasia. The Egyptian bean, a plant 
whose root, stalk, and fruit were used for food, had just been intro- 
duced into Italy, and was regarded as a valuable rarity. Acantho. 
Virgil mentions two kinds of acanthus ; an herb, as in III. 45, and a 
tree, as here and in G. II. 119. — 21. Ipsae = of their own accord. 
— 23. Ipsa; i.e. sponte ; in the same sense as ipsae, v. 21, and 
nullo cultu, v. 18. So Ovid speaks of the earth as fruitful per se and 
nullo cogente, and of natos sine semine flores. — 24. Fallax ; because 
of its similarity to harmless ones. Cf. G. II. 152. Herba veneni 
= poisonous herb. — 25. Assyrium ; i. e. eastern, oriental, in a 
general sense. The poets use geographical names very loosely. See 
on Hor. C. I. 2. 22 and C. III. 4. 32. Amomum. See on III. 89. 
As a remarkable parallel to this whole passage, compare the prophet 
Isaiah, xxv. 1 and xi. 6-8. — 26. Simul = simul atque, as often. 
Heroum — virtus ; i. e. by reading of the glories of his father and 
the heroes of older time, the child will learn to conceive of virtue. — 
28. Molli . . . arista = with waving corn. Another interpretation is 
"smooth, beardless." The beard, which protects the grain from 
birds, would not be needed in the golden age. Paulatim seems to 
mean here spontaneously ; i. e. there will be no process of sowing, 
from which the springing of the crop can date, but the field will grad- 
ually develop into corn. — 30. Roscida = dewy. The ancients 
imagined that honey fell in the shape of dew, and was gathered by 
the bees from leaves. In the golden age it will be so abundant as to 
drop from the leaves of trees. Cf. G. I. 131. So Ovid : Flavaque 
de viridi stillabant ilice mella. 

31. Before the child becomes a man and the golden age is com- 
pletely restored there will be a repetition of the heroic age, in which 
there will be some traces of ancient wickedness (priscae fraudis), 



448 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

and which Virgil identifies by mentioning the two most prominent 
events of that age, the Argonautic Expedition and the Trojan War. — 
32. Quae . . . jubeant = which (i. e. such as) shall prompt. Gr. 501. 1. 
A. & S. 264. 1 {a) and {b). Thetim; a goddess of the sea, put by 
metonymy for the sea itself. She was a daughter of Nereus, the wife 
of Peleus, and the mother of Achilles. Gr. 85. 4. A. & S. 80, Ex. 2. 
— 34. Tiphys ; the helmsman of the ship Argo which sailed in the 
celebrated quest for the golden fleece with Hercules, Jason, and others 
{delectas heroas). — 35. Altera bella; i.e. the old wars over again. 
36. Achilles ; the son of Peleus, king of the Myrmidones in Phthio- 
tis in Thessaly, and the Nereid Thetis. From his father's name he 
is sometimes called Pelides (A. II. 548), and from that of his grand- 
father Aeacus, he derived his name Aeacides (A. I. 99). In fifty 
ships he led his hosts of Myrmidones, Hellenes, and Achaeans against 
Troy. Here he was the great bulwark of the Greeks, and the wor- 
thy favorite of Minerva and Juno. — 37 - 47. When he shall have 
grown to manhood, the fulness of the blessings of the golden age 
will have come. There will be no need of commerce, for everything 
will grow everywhere. — 38. Et ipse — vector = even the passen- 
ger himself. Much more the sailor in a ship of war. Mari. Gr. 422. 
2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 (a) and (b). — 41. Tauris may be" the dative, 
Gr. 384. A. &S. 223, or the ablative, Gr. 425.3. 2). A. & S. 251. The 
best authorities are divided. — 42. Mentiri = to counterfeit ; i. e. to 
assume colors by means of dyes. — 43. In pratis conveys the same 
idea as pascentes, v. 45 ; i. e. the live sheep in the field, opposed to 
the fleece in the hands of the dyer. — Jam . . . jam = modo . . . modo. 
Suave. See on III. 63. — 44. Murice . . . mutabit — luto = will 
dye his fleece purple . . . yellow ; or more lit. will change (the color 
of) his fleece for purple . . . yellow. Gr. 416. 2. A. & S.<252, R. 5. — 
45. Sandyx = scarlet. — 46. Talia saecla = O blessed ages ! i. e. 
such as those just described. Currite = run on ; i. e. without inter- 
ruption. — 47. Concordes — numine = harmonious in respect to 
the immutable will of the fates. The ages are here spoken of as 
threads spun from the spindles of the Parcae, in strict accord with the 
immutable power which controls their operations. Parcae, three 
sister-goddesses, daughters of Nox : Clotho, who holds the distaff, 
Lachesis, who spins the thread of human life, and Atropos, who 
severs it with scissors. Here each is represented as having her spin- 
dle. See also on Ov. M. II. 256. 49. Deum ; i. e. dei alicujus ; 
poetical for an indefinite singular. Cf. A. VI. 322. Incrementum 
= progeny ; i. e. the boy being regarded as one more added to Jupi- 
ter's race. Some interpret it as the foster-child, the favorite of Jupiter. 
Gr. 672. 3. A. & S. 310. 1. — 50. Adspice mundum = see the 
universe with its convex mass (i. e. the round world) trembling (with 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE V. 449 

joy). Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 51. Terras — profundum; 

the parts of which the mundus is made up. Terrasque. Gr. 669. 
V. A. & S. 283. IV. Ex. 2, R. 3 ; 323, 2 (2). Adspice . . . lae- 
tantur ut omnia = see! how do all things rejoice! This is an 
emphatic repetition of the substance of w. 50, 51, and thus indicates 
the true meaning of mitantem. — 53. The simple wish is, mihi tarn 
longa sit vita ; but since, from the nature of the case, he would be 
quite aged when the child became a man, he says, pars ulti??ia 
vitae, etc. — 54. Spiritus et (sc. mihi sit tantus) = and may my 
poetic inspiration be so great. Tua dicere facta ; a Grecism for ad 
dicenda tua facta. Dicere depends on sat. Gr. 552. 3. A. & S. 270, 
R. 1. — 55. Non...nec...nec. Gr. 585. 2. A. & S. 277, R. 5 {a). 
Orpheus. See on Ov. M. X. Introd. p. 415. Cf. III. 46. — 56. Linus ; 
the son of Apollo and one of the Muses. Huic . . . huic == the one . . . 
the other. Adsit = assist, aid. — 57. Orphei ; a dissyllable. Gr. 669. 
II. A. & S. 54. 5 ; 306. 1. Calliopea, another form of Calliope. 
Gr. 612. 5. A. & S. 283, Ex. 6 (1). — 58. Pan. See on Ov. M. 
XI. 147. The principal seat of his worship was Arcadia, whence it 
spread over other parts of Greece. As the god of pastoral life, he 
was fond of music, and the inventor of the syrinx or shepherd's flute, 
which he himself played in a masterly manner. Arcadia ; a moun- 
tainous province in the midst of the Peloponnesus. Gr. 430 ; 705. II. 
A. & S. 257, R. 7 ; 324 2. — 60. Risu — matrem = by thy smile to 
recognize thy mother ; i. e. to show by thy smile that thou dost rec- 
ognize her. Some refer it to the smile of the mother. This is at 
least very tame, and does not suit so well the meaning of v. 62. The 
wish is that the child may smile on his mother, in order that he may 
receive her smile in return ; for not to receive a parent's smile was 
accounted a bad omen for a child. Neither does it suit so well the 
meaning of v. 61, which assigns the long period of pain and discom- 
fort preceding his birth as the reason why he should recompense the 
mother by a smile of recognition. — 61. Decern . . . menses ; the 
period of gestation as recognized by the Roman law. Tulerunt. 
Gr. 669. IV. A. & S. 307. 1 and (2). Fastidia = discomfort. — 
63. Admission to the table of the gods and the hand of a goddess in 
marriage were the peculiar privileges that followed the deification of 
a hero. 



ECLOGUE V. — DAPHNIS. 

Menalcas invites Mopsus, a somewhat younger shepherd, to play 
and sing. Mopsus complies, with a funeral song on Daphnis, the 
ideal shepherd. Menalcas matches it by a corresponding song on 
29 



450 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

the apotheosis of Daphnis. They praise each other and exchange 
gifts. The original Daphnis was a Sicilian hero, and his name occurs 
frequently in the ancient Pastorals. It is supposed that this Eclogue 
was written B. C. 42, in which year public rejoicings throughout Italy 
were ordered to celebrate the deification of Julius Caesar, the month 
of July being also named after him. According to this conjecture, 
which is not improbable, Virgil celebrates Caesar under the name of 
Daphnis, though not carrying the resemblance through all its fea- 
tures. 

1. Boni = skilled. Calamos — leves = in playing on the slen- 
der pipe ; lit. the slender reeds ; i. e. of which the pipe was con- 
structed. See on III. 25. Cf. Ov. M. XI. 161. Inflare and dicere 
depend upon boni. Gr. 552. 3. A. & S. 270, R. 1. Similar Grecisms 
abound in Virgil. Cf. IV. 54, dicere, and A. VI. 165, ciere. See also 
on Hor. C. I. 1. 18. — 3. Corylis. Gr. 385. 5. A. & S. 223, R. 2 ; 
or 245. II. 2. — 4. Major; sc. natu. — 5. Zephyris motantibus 
(sc. eas) ; whence the uncertainty of the shade. — 6. Adspice, ut 
followed by the indicative calls attention to the fact of the action or 
state expressed by the verb ; by the subjunctive, to the manner in 
which it is performed. Indicative : See ! how the wild vine has over- 
spread the cave ! Subjunctive : See how the wild vine, etc. Cf. IV. 52. 
7. Racemis. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 8. Tibi certat. Gr. 
385. 5. A. & S. 223, R. 2 and (b). Menalcas compliments Mopsus 
as they walk towards the cave, intimating that Amyntas alone dared to 
contend with him in playing on the pipe. — 9. Quid — certet = what 
if the same should strive. Mopsus is not pleased with the allusion 
to Amyntas, and sneers at his vanity. — 10. Fhyllidis ignes = love 
for Phyllis. These genitives are all objective. — 11. Jurgia Codri 
= invectives against Codrus. — 12. Tityrus; probably a servant of 
one of the others. — 13. Immo haec. Menalcas had suggested 
several subjects, but Mopsus prefers to sing some verses which he 
had lately inscribed on the bark of a tree. — 14. Modulans — no- 
tavi = setting them to music I noted down the alternations (of the 
flute and voice). See on III. 22. He inscribed his verses and then 
set them to music, inscribing that also. — 15. Tu — Amyntas. He 
still feels the mention of Amyntas, and says, derisively : After you have 
heard my song, then, if you will, bid Amyntas to contend with me. 

— 16 - 18. Menalcas reassures him. — 19. Plura may be taken as 
the object of desine, though in translating it is better to render it, " to 
say more." — 20. Daphnim. See Introduction. Funere == morte. 

— 21. Nymphis ; sc. fuistis. — 23. Atque . . . atque = et . . . 
et. Crudelia; the predicate accusative. Gr: 373. 3. A. & S. 230, 
N. 3. Mater ; Venus, the reputed mother of the gens Jidia. — 25. 
Nulla nee . . . nee. Gr. 585. 2. A. & S. 277, R. 5 {a). — 26. 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE V. 45 1 

Libavit . . . attigit = tasted . . . touched ; much less drink or eat 
Graminis herbam ; herba being the generic, and gramen the 
specific term, as in herba frumenti. — 27. Daphni. Gr. 94. 1 (2). 
A. & S. 81, R. Poenos; i. e. African. Cf. Hor. C. I. 22. 15, 
16. — 28. Loquuntmr = declare, testify; like coryli testes, v. 21. 
— 29. Et = etiam. Armenias ; since Armenia abounded in ti- 
gers. Curru. Gr. 116. 4 (3). A. & S. 89. 3. Daphnis t teaching the 
swains the rites of Bacchus is an emblem of the civil reforms of 
Caesar. — 30. Inducere = to introduce. — 31. Foliis — hastas ; 
i. e. the thyrsus. See on Ov. M. III. 667 and XI. 9. — 32. Arbori- 
bus ; on which the vine is trained. — 34. Tu — tuis ; sc. sic eras. 
Gr. 390. 2. A. & S. 227, R. 4. Tulerunt = abstulerunt. — 35. 
Ipsa . . . ipse. By these words Pales and Apollo are set in opposi- 
tion to te ; i. e. such was their grief at Daphnis's death, that they 
themselves left the rural abodes of men. The baneful results of their 
departure are described in the following lines. Pales was a Roman 
divinity of flocks and shepherds. Apollo, one of the great divinities 
of the Greeks, was, according to Homer, the son of Zeus and Leto. 
The powers ascribed to him are apparently of different kinds, but all 
are connected with one another, and may be said to be only ram- 
ifications of one and the same. They are the following : — 1. He 
is the god who punishes and destroys the wicked and overbear- 
ing ; 2. The god who affords help and wards off evil ; 3. The god of 
prophecy ; 4. The god of song and music ; 5. The god who protects 
the flocks and cattle ; 6. The god who delights in the foundation 
of towns and the establishment of civil constitutions. It is as 
the rural god of flocks and cattle that he is here mentioned. — 36. 
Grandia. Large grains were selected for seed. — 37. Infelix = 
infecundum ; i. e. useless for food. A venae = wild oats ; which 
were nothing but weeds. Cf. G. I. 154. — 38. Molli is opposed to 
the sharp and prickly thistle and Christ's-thorn, a prickly shrub com- 
mon in the south of Italy. Purpureo. Purpureus is applied not 
only to purple or red, but to any bright color. — 39. Spinis. Gr. 
428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 40. Spargite . . . umbras. From IX. 
19, 20 it would seem that foliis should be interpreted " flowers " 
(Jlorentibtis her bis), and umbras " trees " (viridi umbra). The 
meaning will then be, sow the turf with flowers, and plant trees be- 
side (overshadowing) the fountains. Tombs were often built near 
fountains and surrounded with trees. — 41. Talia refers to what fol- 
lows as well as to what precedes. Mandat — Daphnis is parentheti- 
cal. — 42. Carmen = the (following) poetic inscription. — 43. 
Daphnis — silvis = I am Daphnis (who dwelt) in the woods ; i. e. 
who led the life of a shepherd. — 45. Tale quale. Gr. 438. 4 ; 441. 
A. & S. 204, R. 9; 205, R. 7 (2). —47. Sitim. Gr. 85. III. 2. A. ^ S. 



452 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

79. 2. Restinguere is the subject of est understood. Gr. 549. 
A. & S. 202. 6. III. 5, R. 2. — 48. Sed voce ; i. e. sed, quod ma- 
jus est, voce. Non (nee) solum . . . sed etiam implies simple enume- 
ration, and makes no distinction in point of force between the two 
members, but non (nee) solum . . . sed implies comparison, and 
makes the latter member the stronger. Magistrum. Some critics 
refer this word to Daphnis ; others, to some shepherd who had 
taught Mopsus music. We prefer the latter view. — 49. Alter ab 
illo = secundus post ilium. — 50. Haec . . . nostra ; sc. carmina. 
Quocumque modo = as well as I can ; lit. in whatever way. — 
51. Tollemus ad astra = I will praise to the skies. Some think 
it means, " I will celebrate his ascent to heaven," referring to the 
apotheosis of Julius Caesar ; but this sense would rather require in 
astra, though ad is used in the sense of in, A. I. 259. — 52. Daph- 
nin. Gr. 93. 2. A. & S. 80. Ex. 1. — 53. Sit. Gr. 485 ; 486. 
II. and 2. A. & S. 260, R. 5. Tali . . . munere = than such a 
favor. — 54. Puer ; Daphnis. Ipse = per se. Cantari. Gr. 552. 
3. A. & S. 270, R. 1 and (0) ; 264, N. 6. Ista. Gr. 450. A. & S. 
207, R. 25. — 55. Stimicon ; the fictitious name of some shepherd. 
— 56. The apotheosis of Daphnis begins here, consisting of twenty- 
five lines ; the same number as in the lament of Mopsus. Candi- 
dus = in his (divine) beauty. Olympi ; a mountain 9,700 feet high, 
on the boundary between Macedonia and Thessalia. From its great 
height it was considered the seat of the gods ; hence it is often em- 
ployed by the poets to denote heaven. — 58. All nature, animate 
and inanimate, rejoices at his apotheosis, as it had mourned at his 
death. Cetera rura = fields. Cetera, because rus includes woods, 
as well as woods and pastures. — 59. Pana. See on IV. 58. Dry- 
adas puellas = Dryad maids. See on v. 75. Gr. 98. A. & S. 85, 
Ex. 2 ; 205, R. 11 {a). — 61. Bonus = benignus, as often of gods. Cf. 
v. 65. Otia. See on I. 6. — 62. Ipsi ; i. e. etiam, adeo. See on I. 39. — 
63. Intonsi = unshorn ; i. e. uncleared (of trees). See on Ov. M. 
XI. 158. — 64. Deus — Menalca = that (Daphnis of ours is) a god, 
a god, Menalcas ! This is what the rocks and trees utter. — 65. 
Bonus felixque = kind and propitious. Cf. A. 1. 330. Sis. Gr. 
487 ; 488. I. and 2. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Aras. Gr. 381. A. & S. 
238. 2. — 66. Tibi . . . Phoebo ; scpositas, exstructas, or the like. 
Daphni. Gr. 94. 1 and (2). A. & S. 81, R. Duas altaria = two 
high ones. Ara is the generic term for an altar ; altar e (from alius, 
high), the specific kind of altar on which victims were offered to the 
superior deities. Daphnis, as a hero, has only libations of milk, oil, 
and wine offered to him, not victims. Duas agrees with aras under- 
stood, to which altaria is in apposition. Phoebo. Apollo is men- 
tioned because the birthday of Julius Caesar, which, after his deifica- 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE V. 453 

tion, was celebrated with annual rites, fell on the same day (the 12th 
of July) as the festival in honor of Apollo (Ludi Apollinares). But 
as the Sibylline books forbade the rites of any other god to be cele- 
brated at the same time with those of Apollo, the birthday was "kept 
on the preceding day. — 67, 68. Bina ; i. e. two for each altar ; 
duos, two in all, the crater being larger, from which the pocula might 
be replenished. Besides the birthday festival, v. 66, two others are 
promised annually to Daphnis ; and it is probable that Virgil in- 
tends to rank Caesar among the Lares worshipped in April, when 
the harvest began, and at the close of the vintage in autumn. To 
the former refer novo lacte and messes ; to the latter, olivi and frigits. 
On both he is to offer libations of wine. Olivi ; poetical for olei. — 
69. In primis = especially. Convivia, the banquets after the 
sacrifices. Baccho = vino. — 71. Vino . . . Ariusia. The wine 
from Ariusia, in the island of Chios, is here called a new kind of 
nectar (novum nectar), because recently introduced and esteemed 
very choice. Calathis = from wine cups. — 72. Mini; sc. sacra 
facienti, while sacrificing. Lyctius = Lyctian ; from Lyctus, an 
ancient town in the island of Crete. The proper names here are 
those of imaginary shepherds. — 73. Saltantes — imitabitur. 
Forb. says, Saltabit Satyrorum more ; i. e. in a rude manner. Saty- 
ros ; a species of rustic divinity, attendants of Bacchus, of human 
form, with ears and tail of a goat. In character they were frolicsome, 
and given to animal enjoyment. — 75. Nymphis ; a numerous class 
of inferior female divinities. They belonged to the Greek rather than 
to the Roman religion, and were believed to dwell on earth in groves, 
on the summits of mountains, in rivers, streams, glens, and grottos. 
The following are some of the principal classes mentioned in Latin 
poetry : 1. Nereides, sea-nymphs ; 2. Oreades, mountain-nymphs ; 3. 
Napaeae, dell-nymphs ; 4. Dryades, wood-nymphs ; 5. Naiades, water- 
nymphs ; and 6. Ha??iadryades, tree-nymphs, who were born and died 
together with the trees which had been their abode. Lustrabimus 
agros = we shall lustrate the fields. For a description of this 
lustratio (purification by sacrifice), see on Ambarvalia, III. 76. — 
77. Rore cicadae. The ancients supposed that the cicada lived on 
dew. It is of the cricket tribe, and sits on the trees in summer, 
chirping away the whole day long. — 78. Repeated A. I. 609. — 79. 
Baccho Cererique. Bacchus and Ceres are mentioned, as being 
the chief patrons of husbandmen. — 80. Damnabis — votis == 
thou also wilt bind (them ; i. e. the agricolae who shall make vows to 
thee) by their vows ; i. e. to keep their vows by granting their pray- 
ers. Gr. 410. 5. 3). A. & S. 217, R. 3 (6). — 82. Venientis = 
rising. — 85. Nos. Gr. 367. 2. 1). A. & S. 209, R. 1 (b). Ante 
= first: i. e. before I receive anything from you. Cf. v. 81. Ci- 



454 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

cuta. See on III. 25. — 86. Nos. Gr. 446. 2. A. & S. 209, R. 7 

(b). Menalcas appears to represent Virgil himself. Pormosum — 
Alexini = Corydon ardently loved the beautiful Alexis ; a part of 
the first line of the 2d Eclogue, which is omitted in this selection. 
Gr. 374. A. & S. 231. Alexim. Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 232 (2). — 
87. Cujum — Meliboei. Cf. III. 1. — 88. Quum = although. 
— 89. Non tulit; i. e. did not get. "Et = et tamen or quamqtiam. 
Turn = in those days ; i. e. whatever he may be now. Amari 
See on cantari, v. 54. — 90. Formosum — aere. Keightley says : 
The crook was usually made of olive-wood, which was knotty, and 
was often adorned with brass rings or studs. Paribus may refer to 
the regularity in the position of the natural knots. 



ECLOGUE VII. — MELIBOEUS. 

This is another singing-match between Corydon and Thyrsis, with 
Daphnis as umpire. Unlike those in Eclogues III. and V., it ends 
decisively in the defeat of Thyrsis. The story is told by Meliboeus, 
who was not present until the terms of the contest had been agreed 
on, so that of them we hear nothing. 

The scenery is, as usual, confused. Arcadian shepherds are made 
to sing in the neighborhood of the Mincius, while neither the ilex (v. 
1), the pine (v. 24), the chestnut (v. 53), nor the flocks of goats (v. 7), 
would seem to belong to Mantua. 

After an introduction of twenty verses, the style is amoebean (see 
Introduction to Eclogue III.), the rivals singing four verses each and 
constantly changing the subject. 

1. Arguta = murmuring. Cf. Longfellow : "the murmuring pines 
and the hemlocks." — 2. Unum ; sc. locum. — 3. Distentas ; sc. 
ubera. — 4. Florentes aetatibus = in the bloom of their age, in 
their prime. Aetatibus ; the plural used poetically, each being made 
to have his own aetas. Arcades ; either Arcadians by birth or Ar- 
cadians in musical skill. Gr. 624. 3. 1). A. & S. 300. Ex. 2 (d). — 
5. Cant are . . . respondere. See on V. 1. Respondere refers to 
the amoebean style of singing. — 6. Hue ; i. e. towards the place 
where they were sitting. — Mini . . . caper = my he-goat. Gr. 
398. 5. A. &. S. 211, R. 5 (1). Cf. caper tibi, v. 9. Defendo ; i.e. 
by putting straw about them. The time must be the early spring, 
when the night frost often bit the tender plants in the north of Italy. 
The present tense, for vivacity. — 7. Vir = husband, leader. Ipse 
implies that he was followed by the rest of the flock ; hence et haedi, 
v. 9. Deerraverat. Gr. 669. II. A.& S. 306. 1 and (1). Atque; 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE VII. 455 

sc. caprum quaerens. Atque often introduces a statement not only 
additional, but unexpected. Ades = veni. — 10. Si — potes = 
if thou canst stop a while. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). — 11. Ipsi. 
See on IV. 21. Potum. Gr. 569. A. & S. 276. II. Juvenci; 
not belonging to Daphnis, as some would have it, nor necessarily to 
Meliboeus, as others ; but rather introduced as a bit of landscape 
painting. — 12. Virides. Keightley would read viridis (Mincius). 
Praetexit = skirts, fringes. Cf. A. VI. 5. — 13. The Mincius 
rises in the Alps, and near Mantua forms the Lake Benacus, thence 
flows on to the Po, in a sluggish stream and with sedgy banks. See 
on 1. 49. Sacra ; i. e. to Jupiter. — 14. Facerem. Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 
260, R. 5. Alcippen . . . Phyllida ; probably the contubernales re- 
spectively of Corydon and Thyrsis. Meliboeus means that he had no 
one at home, as they had, to attend to his affairs. The ego expressed 
favors this view. See on I. 31. — 15. Depulsos a lacte. See on 
III. 82. Quae clauderet = to shut up. Gr. 500. A. & S. 264. 1 
(a) and (b). — 16. Corydon cum Thyrside is connected by a sort 
of loose apposition with certamen. Magnum seems to be a predi- 
cate. — 19. Meminisse ; sc. eos. As the poets were taught by the 
Muses, they might justly say that they remembered their lyrics. — 21. 
Nymphae ; since they, like the Muses, were patronesses of song. 
Amor; abstract for concrete. Gr. 363. 1. A. & S. 204, R. 3. Li- 
bethrides = Libethrian ; i. e. belonging to Libethrus, a fountain with 
a cave in Mount Helicon. Gr. 624. 3. 1). A. & S. 300. Ex. 2 ( d). — 

22. Codro ; either some shepherd, or a wholly fictitious character, 
as in V. 11. Proxima ; sc. carmina from the preceding carmen. — 

23. Facit. Gr. 669. V. A. & S. 309. 2 (1). Si non possumus; 
i. e. to rival Codrus. — 24. Pendebit. Those who left any art used 
to hang up the implements by which it was practised as a sacred of- 
fering : here to Pan, to whom the pine was sacred. — 25. Hedera. 
See on Hor. C. I. 1. 29. Nascentem . . . poetam = the rising poet ; 
i. e. Thyrsis himself, as the superior of Codrus. The modesty of 
Corydon is well contrasted with the arrogance of Thyrsis. — 26. In- 
vidia — Codro = that Codrus may burst with envy. Gr. 398. 5. 
A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 27. Ultra placitum = beyond what is 
pleasing ; i. e. to the gods. Extravagant praise was considered like- 
ly to provoke the jealousy of the gods. Some refer the words to 
Codrus instead of to the gods. Bacchare. This plant was con- 
sidered an antidote for the evil eye, or the evil tongue. — 29. Cory- 
don speaks in the character of Micon, a young hunter, who is dedi- 
cating an offering to Diana in the form of an inscription. Delia, a 
name for Diana, from the island Delos. See on Ov. M. VI. 187 and 
190. Parvus = young. — 30. Micon; sc.dicat. Vivacis. Among 
the ancients the stag was proverbially long-lived. — 31. Proprium 



45^ NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

= lasting, permanent. Cf. A. VI. 871. Hoc = this (success in 
hunting). Tota = entire ; i. e. not a mere head or bust. — 32. 
Suras. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. The description is that of a 
huntress. Cf. A. I. 337. — 33. Thyrsis responds with an inscription 
for a statue of Priapus, the god of procreation, and hence of gardens 
and vineyards. He was the reputed son of Bacchus and Venus. Si- 
num must not be confounded with sinus. Liba ; cakes used as offer- 
ings. Cf. Ov. Trist. IV. 10. 12 and note. — 35. Pro tempore = ac- 
cording to our circumstances. — 36. Fetura = fruitfulness. Statues 
of Priapus were usually made in a coarse way out of wood, but Thyr- 
sis promises the god a golden one, if he gives increase to the flocks. 
Esto. Gr. 534. II. A. & S. 267 (2). —37. Nerine. Gr. 316. 4. 
A. & S. 100. 1. (&) R. 3. Galatea ; a sea-nymph, daughter of Nereus 
and Doris. Hyblae. See on I. 55. — 39. Quum — tauri ; i. e. in 
the evening. — 40. Venito. See on esto, v. 36. — 41. Sardoniis . . . 
herbis. The plant is the celery-leaved crowfoot. It grows abun- 
dantly in Sardinia, (whence its name,) and is celebrated for its bitter- 
ness and its contractile effect on the muscles of the face, so that those 
who chew it seem to laugh ; hence our phrase, sardonic laugh, as ap- 
plied to involuntary or forced laughter. Videar. Gr. 488. I. and 2. 
A. & S. 260, R. 6. — 42. Rusco ; a low, prickly shrub, indigenous 
in England, and called butcher's-broom. Cf. G. II. 413. Projecta 
= thrown (on the shore) ; and which no one cares to take up. — 43. 
Lux = dies. — 44. Si quis pudor = if you have any shame ; as much 
as to say, you ought to be ashamed of yourselves to keep me so long 
from my love. — 45. Somno mollior. Cf. G. II. 470. — 46. Kara; 
because the branches of the arbutus are not thick and the leaves are 
small. Arbutus ; the nominative for the vocative. — 49 - 52. As 
an offset to Corydon's picture of a shady retreat from the midday 
heat of summer, his rival sings the comforts of the shepherd's home 
in the winter. — 50. Nigri. The ancients had no chimneys, and the 
smoke escaped through a hole in the roof or by the doors. — 51. 
Tantum = so much only, as little. — 52. Numerum ; sc. ovium. 
The wolf when attacking the sheep cares not how many there are, 
since he fears them not. — 53-56. An autumn scene. Stant = 
stand bristling. The word is not simply = sunt. See on Hor. C. I. 
9. 1. Juniperi — castaneae. Gr. 669. I. 2. A. & S. 305 (2). 
Hirsutae ; of the prickly husk of the chestnut. Gr. 672. 3. A. & S. 
310. I. 1. — 54. Sua — arbore = its own under each tree. Some 
read quaeque, in which case sua is an ablative, and scanned as a mono- 
syllable. — 56. Abeat, videas. Gr. 509. A. & S. 261 and 2. 
Et = even. — 57-60. The same subject, but the opposite side of 
the picture. — 57. Vitio . . . aeris = by a diseased state of the air ; 
i. e. by excessive heat and drought. — 58. Liber; Bacchus. See on 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE IX. 



457 



Ov. M. III. 636. Cf. the epithet Lyaeus, explained on Ov. M. XI. 67. 
Invidit = has grudged, denied. — 60. Juppiter = aether. The 
image is that of G. II. 325, the marriage of Jupiter and Juno, 
Aether and Earth. Cf. also ruit arduus aether, G. I. 324, and coeli 
ruina, A. I. 129, which is essentially the same picture. Cf. G. I. 418 ; 
II. 419 ; Ov. M. II. 377 ; Hor. C. I. 1. 25, etc. Laeto = joy-giving j 
from the effect. Plurimus == very abundant. Cf. G. I. 187 ; A. VI. 
659, etc. Gr. 160. A. & S. 122, R. 4. Imbri. Gr. 87. III. 3 (3). 
A. & S. 82, Ex. 5 (a). — 61. Alcidae ; Hercules, the grandson of 
Alcaeus. Gr. 316. A. & S. 100. 1 and [a). Iaccho, a name of 
Bacchus, from lax <° t0 shout. See also on G. I. 166. — 69. Haec 
memini. Meliboeus here resumes the narrative, and declares Cory- 
don victor. — 70. Corydon — nobis = Corydon, Corydon is (the 
man) for me. The proper name is repeated for emphasis. 



ECLOGUE IX. — MOERIS. 



The historical occasion of this Eclogue has been already adverted 
to in the Life of Virgil. After obtaimng a promise of protection, the 
poet is said to have returned to his property, when his entrance was 
resisted and his life menaced by an intruding soldier, whose name is 
variously given as Arrius, Claudius, or Milienus Toro. He sought 
safety in flight, and made a second appeal to the higher authorities, 
which was crowned with more permanent success. Ruaeus conjec- 
tures that this Eclogue was in fact a poetical petition presented to 
Varus or Octavianus. Certainly it is skilfully contrived to interest 
the reader in the poet's favor. Moeris, one of the servants, is going 
to the town (Mantua), to carry part of the farm produce to the usurp- 
ing proprietor, when he is stopped by a neighbor, Lycidas, relates his 
and his master's troubles, and receives a warm expression of sym- 
pathy at the loss which had so nearly fallen on the whole district by 
the death of Menalcas (Virgil), some of the poet's verses being quoted 
to show how great that loss would have been, while it is hinted that 
his successful return will produce further poems. 

1. Pedes ; sc. ducunt. — 2. Vivi pervenimus = we have lived 
to see, have reached the point alive ; vivi expressing both that they 
might have expected to die before such an outrage, and also that 
death would have been a boon. Advena ; used contemptuously, as 
in A. IV. 591. Nostri . . . agelli = of our (i. e. of my) land ; slaves 
then, as now, speaking of their master's property as their own. The 
involved order of the words seems to indicate the perturbation of 
Moeris. — 3. Ut relates to an omitted eo> implied in vivi pervenimus. 



45 8 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

— 4. Coloni = inhabitants, owners. — 5. Victi = overpowered ; 
L e. by the veterans. Tristes ; because victi. — 6. Quod — bene = 

and may bad luck go with them ; lit. and may which not turn out well. 
Gr. 445, 7. A. & S. 206 (13). Mittimus. Moeris seemingly speaks 
for his master, who sends him with the present. — 7. Certe audi- 
eram = I for my part had heard for certain (for a fact). Certe adds 
confirmation to the whole sentence, and is to be joined to the verb, 
while equidem gives assurance to the subject, and is to be joined to 
the pronoun. Qua fagos ; with omnia, expressing the extent of the 
property. Qua = (from the point) where. Se subducere . . . 
molli — clivo = to decline (more lit. to withdraw themselves), and 
to lower the summit by a gentle slope ; jugum demittere being nearly 
= se subducere. — 9. Aquam ; probably of the Mincius. Jam in- 
dicates that fracta is to be referred to their age. Cacumina. The 
apposition between a thing and a prominent part of itself is not un- 
common. Cf. juvenes, fortissima pectora, A. II. 348. Gr. 363. A. & S. 
204. — 10. Carminibus. By means of his poetry, Menalcas (Vir- 
gil) obtained friends, through whom he had recovered his land. Ves- 
trum; the plural, as Moeris had used it, for the whole house- 
hold. See on nostri, v. 2. So nostra, v. 12. — 13. Chaonias. Do- 
dona, a city of Epirus, famed for its oracle, the most ancient in 
Greece, was anciently inhabited by the Chaonians. The oracle was 
at first interpreted by men, and afterwards by aged women, called 
TreXcucu, i. e. doves, the command to found the oracle having been 
brought, it was said, by doves. Hence Chaonian doves. Tennyson 
speaks of the oak-grove of Dodona as " that Thessalian growth In 
which the swarthy ring-dove sat, And mystic sentence spoke." — 14. 
Quod nisi = and if not. Gr. 453. 6. A. & S. 206 (14). Qua- 
cumque (sc. via, ratione) ; i. e. on any terms, as best I could. — 15. 
Sinistra = on the left. Monuisset , . . viveret. Gr. 510. 
A. & S. 261. 1. — 17. Cadit in = does fall to, attach to ; i. e. is any 
one capable of so great wickedness ? — 18. Paene ; alluding to the 
narrow escape of Menalcas (Virgil). Solatia; i. e. his poems, which 
were a joy and solace to all that heard them. Menalca. He apos- 
trophizes the absent poet. — 19, 20. Quis — umbra. The allusion 
is probably to V. 20, 40, on which latter see note. Induceret = 
would overspread. Umbra. Gr. 419. 2. A. & S. 249. I. — 21. 
Vel — carmina (sc. quis caneret ea) = or (who would sing those) 
verses which I in silence caught up from you without your noticing 
it (sub) ; i. e. overheard you sing them. Tibi is evidently Menalcas, 
though many of the critics refer it to Moeris. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 
224, R. 2. — 22. Nostras ; i. e. the delight of all of us ; implying 
that she was a general favorite. — 23. Dum redeo = while I am on 
my way back : not " till I come back," as some would have it. The 



THE BUCOLICS. ECLOGUE IX. 459 

use of the present shows that it is the continuance of the time, not its 
completion, that is thought of. We should have expected dum ad- 
sum ; but the speaker, in asking to be waited for, naturally talks of 
himself, not as absent, but as coming back. — 24. Potum = to drink. 
Gr. 569. A. & S. 276. II. Inter agendum = while driving (them). 
Gr. 565. A. & S. 275. III. R. 3. — 25. Capro. Gr. 386. A. & S. 
224. Verses 23 - 25 are borrowed from Theocritus, after whom sev- 
eral passages in this Eclogue are modelled. — 26. Immo = nay, 
rather : sc. quis ca,7ieret. Quae — canebat = which, and that 
not finished, he was composing in honor of Varus ; probably Alfe- 
nus Varus, who was appointed by Octavianus, B. C. 40, to preside 
over Cisalpine Gaul. He appears to have been favorably disposed 
to Virgil, who may flatter him here to induce him to deal leniently 
with Mantua. — 27. Superet. Gr. 503. 1. A. & S. 263. 2 (1). — 
28. Nimium vicina ; though they were forty miles apart, because 
Mantua suffered for its proximity to its disaffected neighbor. See 
Life. — 29. Cycni. The Mincius abounded in swans. Cf. G. II. 
199. On the swan as a singing bird, see on Hor. C. IV. 2. 25. — 30. 
Sic — incipe = as you hope that your bees may avoid the Corsi- 
can yews, as you hope that your cows, etc., begin : more lit. so may 
your bees, etc., (as you) begin. See on Hor. C. I. 3. I. 1 Lycidas, 
anxious to hear more of the verses of Menalcas, conjures Moeris, by 
what is most to be desired by a farmer, to go on with what he can 
recollect of them. Cyrneas ; from Cyrnos, the Greek name of the 
island of Corsica. Taxos. The yew-tree was prejudicial to bees, and 
the honey made from it was said to be bitter. — 31. Cytiso. Gr. 
414 and 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 32. Si quid habes. See on III. 52. 
Foetam, vatem. Poeta is a technical expression, and denotes a 
poet only as an artist ; vates is an old Latin and religious expression, 
and denotes a poet as a sacred person. Dod. This distinction, how- 
ever, is not always observed. Here vatem may be rendered " an inspired 
bard." Lycidas claims to be a poeta, but disclaims the honors of the 
vates. — 33. Pierides. See on Ov. M. V. Introd. — 34. Non — 
illis = I do not believe them. Gr. 391. A. & S. 222. 3. — 35. 
Vario . . . Cinna ; distinguished Roman poets, contemporaries of 
Virgil. Gr. 419. IV. A. & S. 244. — 36. Argutos — olores = to 
cackle like a goose among the tuneful swans. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. 
Anser, according to Servius, is a punning reference to a contempo- 
rary poet of that name, and probably, like Bavius and Maevius, per- 
sonally obnoxious to Virgil. 

37. Id quidem ago = that very thing I am trying to do ; refer- 
ring to the incipe, si quid habes, of v. 32. Ipse. Gr. 452. 1. A. & S. 
207, R. 28 (a). — 38. Si valeam = in the hope that I may be able, 
lit. if I may be able. — Neque = non enim. — 39. Hue ades. See 



460 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

on VII. 9. Galatea. See on VII. 37. These verses are from the 
nth Idyl of Theocritus, and are a part of the address of Polyphemus 
the Cyclops to the sea-nymph Galatea, who was beloved by him. 
Quis est nam ; by tmesis for quisnam est. A. & S. 323. 4(5). — 40. 
Purpureum. See on V. 38. Circum ; merely denoting proximity, 
like " about." A. & S. 279. 10 (/). — 42. Umbracula = a bower. — 
43. Feriant. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 44. Quid, quae = 
what (do you say of those verses), which ; how (about those verses), 
which. — 45. Numeros = the measures, the tune. Si — tenerem 
= if I only had the words. Here the conditional clause is not logi- 
cally connected with the other, but with something understood ; e. g. 
it might be, numeros memini, et carmen ipsum revocarem, si verba 
tenerem. Cf. Gr. 512. — 46. Daphni. Daphnis is addressed as the 
representative of the shepherds who watch the stars for agricultural 
purposes. Cf. G. L 204 foil. Quid. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 235, R. 
n. Antiquos (long known) is transferred from signorum (constel- 
lations) to ortus. — 47. Dionaei = Dionean, descendant of Dione. 
The Julian gens was derived from lulus, the son of Aeneas, who was 
the son of Venus, daughter of Dione. Cf. A. I. 286. Processit = 
has risen. Astrum ; the comet which appeared after the death of 
Julius Caesar. See on Hor. C. I. 12. 47. — 48. Quo segetes. The 
Julian star is to be the farmer's star, as Julius in v. 79 is the farmer's 
god, and Octavianus also (G. I. 24 foil). Quo = by whose agency, 
influence. Gauderent is best rendered by the future. Gr. 500. 
A. & S. 264. 1 (a) and (b). Frugibus. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247. 
1 (2). — 49. Duceret . . . colorem = shall derive color , i. e. shall 
ripen. — 50. Insere piros ; for this propitious star shall make them 
fruitful for many generations. — 51. Pert = aufert. Cf. V. 34. Ani- 
mum = animi vires, memoriam. His memory failing him, he sud- 
denly stops and sorrowfully adds, omnia fert aetas\ etc. — 52. Puerum. 
Gr. 363. 3. A. & S. 204, R. 1 {a). — 53. Oblita. Gr. 221. 2. A. & S. 
162. 17 {a). Mini. Gr. 388. II. A. & S. 225. II. — 54. Lupi — 
priores. The ancient Italians believed that a man meeting a wolf 
and not catching its eye first would be struck dumb. — 55. Satis 
referet . . . saepe = will repeat often enough. 56. Caussando 
amores = by feigning excuses thou puttest off for a long time (the 
gratification of ) my desire ; i. e. to hear you sing. — 57. Tibi = for 
thee ; i. e. that you may be the better heard. Stratum = laid smooth. 
— 58. Ventosi . . . murmuris = of windy murmur; for venti 
murmurantis. — 59. Hinc — via = from this very point is half our 
way (to the town). Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. — 62. Bianoris. 
Bianor, or Ocnus, was a son of Tiberis and Manto, and built the town 
of Mantua, which he called after his mother. — 61. Stringunt ; i. e. 
for fodder. — 62. Tamen = notwithstanding ; referring to a thought 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 46 1 

not expressed ; though we do stop, we shall, notwithstanding, reach 
the town betimes. — 63. Colligat. Gr. 492. 4. 1). A. & S. 262, R. 7. 
The night is said to gather the rain, because as night comes on the 
clouds often gather, a prelude of rain. Ante = before (we get there). 
64. Licet usque . . eamus = we may go right on ; i. e. without 
stopping. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. Laedit = tires, wearies. 

— 65. Hoc . . . fasce = of this burden ; meaning the kids, which 
may have been carried in some sort of bundle. He intends that 
Moeris shall be the first to sing. Gr. 425. 2. A. & S. 251. — 66. 
Plura. See on V. 19. Puer. Gr. 669. V. A. & S. 309. 2 (1). 
Instat = is urgent ; i. e. the carrying of the kids to his new master. 

— 67. Ipse ; Menalcas. 



THE GEORGICS. Book I. 

The name Georgics (Georgica) is Greek, Tecopyiica, and means 
" agricultural affairs." The title Georgicon is the Greek genitive plu- 
ral of georgica. The poem is divided into four books, of which the 
first treats of agriculture, the second, of the cultivation of vines and 
trees, the third, of raising cattle, and the fourth, of the management 
of bees. For a history of the Georgics, see the Life of Virgil. 

The subject of the First Book is the tillage of the ground with a 
view to crops, chiefly corn. The mention of the uncertainty of the 
weather at different times of the year leads the poet to give a list of 
the signs of a storm and of fair weather, which he abridges from the 
Diosemeia of Aratus. From this he passes to the signs of the polit- 
ical storm which had broken over Rome, and shows that external 
nature had been no less eloquent there, while he prays that Octavi- 
anus Caesar may yet be spared to save society. 

ARGUMENT. 

I. General subject of the whole poem ; viz. : Agriculture, Book 
I. ; Vines and Trees, Book II. ; Cattle, Book III. ; 
Bees, Book IV. ; (lines 1 -4) 
II. Invocation of gods, and of Caesar (5 - 42). 
III. Opening of subject proper. Preparations for sowing : 

1. Period at which to commence ploughing (43 - 49). 

2. Nature of climate, character of soil, and most suitable 

modes of cultivation, to be ascertained (50-62). 



462 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

3. Minute directions as to the manner and time of plough- 

ing particular kinds of soil (63 - 70). 

4. Means of refreshing the soil (71 -93). 

5. Modes of pulverizing the soil (94-99). 
IV. Operations succeeding sowing : 

1. Rendering the so\S. fine (100-105). 

2. Irrigation of crops (106- no). 

3. Checking of luxuriant growth (in - 113). 
4 Drawing off excessive moisture (114- 117). 

5. Drawbacks and annoyances to which the husbandman 
is subject : the means of preventing or of remedy- 
ing them (118- 159). 
V. Agricultural implements and appliances (160- 186). 
VI. Indications of the. yield of the ensuing harvest, and artificial 

means of increasing fruitfulness of seed (187-203). 
VII. Proper season for sowing different seeds to be decided by ob- 
servation of the heavenly bodies ; explanation of the 
seasons (204-256). 
VIII. How the husbandman is to employ his leisure time ; what 
days are lucky or unlucky for certain transactions ; and 
what operations should be done by night or by day in 
preference (157-310). 
IX. The weather : 

1. Storms of particular seasons (311-334). 

2. Means of guarding against them (335-350). 

3. Prognostics of change of weather (351-463). 

X. Political changes even foretold by heavenly bodies ; the death 
of Julius Caesar ; its prognostics, its accompaniments, 
and its consequences (464-514). 

1. Quid — < segetes = what may make corn-fields productive ; lit. 
joyous. Compare Psalms, lxv. 13. The sense is substantially the 
same, if we render segetes " corn, crops," and laetas " abundant." 
Quo sidere = under what constellation, at what season of the 
year. Gr. 426 and 1. A. & S. 253 and N. 1. — 2. Vertere ; i.e. 
to plough. Cf. v. 147. Maecenas (C. Cilnius), the great friend 
and close confidant of Augustus, the enlightened patron of literature 
and art, had first suggested this poem, and to him it is naturally in- 
scribed. See Life of Virgil. — 3. Qui — pecori = what sort of 
treatment (attention, care) may he requisite for preserving the flock ; 
i. e. for keeping up the stock. Gr. 564. A. & S. 275, III. R. 2 and 
(1). Z. 664. Pecori means small cattle, as sheep and goats, and is 
opposed to bourn. — 4. Apibus ; sc. habendis from the preceding 
habendo. Experientia ; of the bee-keeper, not of the bees. — 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 463 

5. Hinc = from this point of time, now. Vos ; subject oi ferte in v. 1 i e 
— 6. Lumina ; i. e. Sol et Luna. Labentem ; denoting the noise- 
less pace of time. Coelo = along the sky. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 
254, R. 3. — 7. Liber. See on E. VII. 58. Alma is derived from 
alo. Proprie sunt alma quae alunt, ut lac, nutrix, Ceres, et alia ; inde 
quaecumque bona, benefica, utilia, jucunda et grata sunt. Hence this 
adj. is used of the cattle and the fields ; of the sun and the light ; of 
water ; of nurses ; and of the gods. Ceres. See on Ov. M. V. 341 
and 343. Si = if, since, so surely as. So frequently in adjurations. 
It introduces the reason why the prayer should be granted. — 8. 
Chaoniam. See on IX. 13. Glandem = mast, acorns ; the food • 
of man till he was taught agriculture by Ceres. Arista. Gr. 416. 2. 
A. & S. 252, R. 5. — 9- Pocula . . . Acheloia = cups of water. 
Achelous, the river flowing between Aetolia and Acarnania, was said 
to be the oldest of all rivers, and consequently is often used by the 
poets for water in general. Uvis = 77z;z0. Gr. 705. II.; 385. 5. 
A. & S. 324 2 ; 245, R. 1. — 10. Praesentia. See on Ov. M. III. 658. 
Cf. E. I. 42. Fauni ; rural deities, represented as half men and half 
goats. — 11. Ferte . . . pedem (sc. hue) = come hither, come to my 
aid. Fauni. The repetition of Fauni serves as a kind of correction 
of the previous verse, where they alone were mentioned. Dryades. 
See on E. V. 59. — 12. Munera ; i. e. corn, wine, herds, flocks, 
trees. The deities thus far mentioned preside over the subjects of 
the first two books ; those next invoked, over the subjects of the last 
two books. Tu . . . et cultor ; sc. ferte pedem. Cui = at whose com- 
mand. Prima = primum ; i. e. it was the first horse created. 
Neptune produced the first horse by a stroke of his trident. See on 
v. 18. — 14. Neptune; the son of Saturnus and Ops, and chief deity 
of the sea. He is represented as carrying the trident, or three- 
pronged spear. Amphitrite was his queen. Cf. A. I. 124 foil. 
Cultor nemorum = guardian of woodland pastures. Cultor is by 
some taken here as = incola. The reference is to Aristaeus, the son 
of Apollo and Cyrene, and the guardian of flocks and pastures. 
Cui implies that the process goes on for him, because he is its 
patron and author, thus denoting causation indirectly. Pinguia = 
luxuriant. Ceae. After the death of his son Actaeon, Aristaeus re- 
tired to Ceos, or Cea (now Zea), one of the Cyclades, not far from 
Attica, where he delivered the inhabitants from a destructive drought 
by erecting an altar to Zeus. — 15. Ter centum ; a definite for an in- 
definite number. Tondent ; the present suggesting that the god is 
still guardian of the island. — 16. Ipse expresses marked emphasis ; 
even thou too, who art usually so loath to leave thy own Arcadia 
See on E. IV. 58. Saltus, same as nemorum in v. 14 Lycaei, 
Maenala; mountains in Arcadia, the former the birthplace of Pan, 



464 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

the latter his favorite haunt. Gr. 141. A. & S. 92. I. and 1. Si; 
same as in v. 7. Tibi . . . curae. Gr. 390. A. & S. 227. — 18. 
Adsis, Gr. 487 ; '488. I. and 2. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Tegeaee = 

Tegean, god of Tegea. Pan is so called, from Tegea, a city in Ar- 
cadia, where he was specially worshipped. Minerva ; daughter of 
Jupiter, said to have sprung from his forehead completely armed. 
She was goddess of wisdom, war, and the liberal arts, the guardian 
and helper of heroes, and presiding goddess of Athens. When the 
dispute arose between Neptune and Minerva as to which of them 
should have the honor of naming Athens, the gods decided that it 
should receive its name from the one who should bestow upon man 
the most useful gift. Neptune then created the horse, and Minerva 
called forth the olive-tree, for which the honor was conferred upon 
her. Hence she is called oleae inventrix. — 19. Puer ; Triptolemus, 
of Eleusis, the son of Celeus. He was the favorite of Ceres, and the 
inventor of the plough. — 20. Ab radice = torn up by the root ; 
i. e. root and all. Silvane; an old Roman god of agriculture, cattle, 
boundaries, and forests. He was usually represented as bearing a 
young cypress plant. — 21. Studium ; sc. est. Gr. 362. A. & S. 
210. Quibus. Gr. 390 and 2. A. & S. 227 and R. 4. Tueri. 
Gr. 549. A. & S. 209, R. 3 (5). — 22. Novas t . frnges = young 
plants. Non ullo semine = which grow without cultivation ; lit. 
having no seed ; opposed to satis in the next line. Cf. sine semine, 
Ov. M. I. 108. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6.-24. Adeo = 
especially. Sint habitura. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 25. Con- 
cilia = the assembly, company. The plural is poetic. Cf. E. I. 
6, 7. Invisere = to oversee, superintend. Invisere and curam 
both have the same grammatical relation to velis. A change in the 
construction from a verb to a noun, and from a noun to a verb, is not- 
uncommon. Cf. E. V. 46, 47. — 26. Maximus orbis (sc. terra- 
rum) = the entire earth ; i. e. the inhabitants. — 27. Auctorem — 
potentem = as the giver of increase to its productions, and the lord 
of its changeful seasons. — 28- Cingens ; sc. orbis. A fine image, 
representing the whole human race as uniting to crown Caesar with 
a myrtle wreath. Materna . . . myrto. The myrtle was sacred to 
Venus. See on E. VII. 62 and IX. 47. — 29. An — maris = or 
whether thou art to come as (i. e. art to be =futurus sis) the god 
of the unmeasured sea. — 30. Numina. See on concilia, v. 25. 
Thule ; the extreme northern point of legendary travel. Some re- 
gard it as one of the Shetland Islands, others as Iceland, others as 
Norway, others still as Jutland. — 31. Generum. Gr. 373. A. & S. 
230, R. 2. Tethys. See on Ov. M. II. 69. She was the mother of 
tiie Oceanides. See on E. V. 75. Omnibus undis ; i. e. the whole 
sovereignty of the sea. In heroic times, parents used to give large 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 465 

dowries with their daughters. — 32. Tardis . . . mensibus ; i. e. the 
summer months, when the days are longest, and therefore the course 
of the sun apparently slowest. This is clear from the position as- 
signed him between Virgo and Scorpio. Sidus = constellation ; 
i. e. one of the signs of the zodiac. — 33. Erigoneri. In Virgil's 
time the space between the sign of Virgo (Erigone, or Astraea ; see 
on Ov. M. I. 150) and that of the Scorpion, now occupied by Libra, 
was vacant, or only occupied by the claws (chelas) of the Scorpion. 
Sequentes = following ; i. e. in the zodiacal order. — 34. Ipse — 
reliquit ; parenthetical. The Scorpion is represented as readily 
(ipse = of himself) contracting his claws (brachia) to make room for 
his new companion, and as showing his respect for him by yielding 
more than a fair share (justa parte) of space. Ardens = bright, 
blazing ; an epithet of the constellation. — 36. Speraut Tartara 
Gr. 474. A. & S. 259. The honor is really too great for Tartarus to 
hope for. Gr. 141. A. & S. 92. 1. Tartarus ; properly the nether 
abode of the wicked, here used of the lower world generally. — 37. 
Veniat Gr. 485; 486. I. and 2. A. & S. 260. II. Dira = in- 
tense. Cf. A. VI. 373. — 38. Miretur = celebrates, paints in glow- 
ing colors. Gr. 514; 515 and I: A. & S. 263. 2 (1). Graecia. 
Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2.-39. Repetita = recalled. Curet 
= nolit. Matrem ; i. e. Ceres. — 40. Facilem cursum = an 
easy (i. e. prosperous) course ; a metaphor taken from navigation. 
The sentence begun v. 24 is here completed. Audacibus — coep- 
tis = be favorable to, smile on, my bold undertaking ; i. e. that of 
being the first to write a Latin poem on agriculture. 

41. Mecum ; with miseratus. — 42. Ingredere ; i. e. enter upon 
thy career as a god. Jam nunc = even now. — 43. Vere novo. 
The Roman spring began between the Nones and Ides of February, 
when the west wind (Favonius or Zephyrus ; see Hor. C. I. 4 1) be- 
gan to blow, and ended about the middle of May ; but ploughing 
commenced sometimes even by the middle of January. Gelidus ; 
from the melting snow. Canis ; because covered with snow. Mon- 
tibus. Gr. 425. 3 (4). A. & S. 255, R. 3 (b). — 44. Zephyro = 
through the agency of, under the influence of, the west wind. Gr. 
414 and 5. A. & S. 247. — 45. Depresso ; i. e. pressed deeply in- 
to the soil. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257. Jam turn = then immediately ; 
emphatic. Mini. Gr. 389. A. & S. 228, N. (a). Connect with in- 
cipiat. It may be interpreted as = if you have any regard for my ad- 
vice. Taurus = bos, juvencus ; so elsewhere. The ancients never 
ploughed with bulls. — 46. Ingemere; a consequence of the de- 
presso aratro. — 47. Seges = terra, ager. Avari = eager ; not 
here in a bad sense. — 48. Bis . . . bis. The common practice was 
to plough three times, in spring, summer, and autumn ; but where the 
30 



466 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

soil was hard and heavy there was another ploughing in the autumn 
of the previous year. Thus the soil twice felt the chills of autumn 
(i. e. after the first and last ploughings), and twice the heat of sum- 
mer (i. e. after the second and third). — 49. Illius ; sc. segetis. Rupe- 
runt = are wont to burst. The perfect is sometimes used, like the 
Greek aorist, to express what is habitual and customary. — 50. Igno- 
tum ; i. e. whose nature is unknown to us, as having been recently ac- 
quired or not yet tried. Ferro . . . scindimus = aramus. See on 
Hor. C. I. i. ii. Aequor = the level surface of the field. — 51. 
Ventos — coeli . . . morem = the (prevailing) winds and the vari- 
ations (lit. various nature) of the weather. — 52. Patrios — locoruni 
= both the peculiar modes of cultivation and characteristics of (par- 
ticular) localities. Patrios belongs to habitus as well as to cultus. 
There is a hysteron-proteron in cultus and habitus, since the mode 
of cultivation depends upon the character of the ground. Gr. 704. 2. 
A. & S. 323. 4 (2). — 54. Veniunt =proveniunt, crescunt. Cf. II. 11. 

— 55. Arborei fetus = fruit trees. Injussa = sponte. Natural 
pastures, where no seed has been sown, are referred to. — 56. Cro- 
ceos . . . odores, for crocum odoratum. Tmolus. See on Ov. M. II. 
217 and XI. 152. —57. Mittit; i. e. to Rome. Gr. 525. 6. A. & S. 
265, R. 1. Sua ; i. e. peculiar to their country. Gr. 449. II. 2. 
A. & S. 208 (8). Sabaei ; a people of Arabia Felix. — 58. Chaly- 
bes ; a people in the northern part of Armenia. Their country was 
famous for its iron mines. Nudi = thinly clad ; i. e. when working 
at the forge. Virosa . . . castorea = strong-smelling castor. Cas- 
tor was an animal substance obtained from the beaver, and highly 
valued as a medicine. Pontus ; a country in the extreme northeast 
of Asia Minor, extending along the coast of the Euxine. — 59. Elia- 
dum palmas equarum = the palms of the mares of Elis ; i. e. the 
mares which win palms at the Olympian games in Elis. See on 
Hor. C. II. 16. 35 and C. IV. 2. 17. Epiros; a country in the ex- 
treme northwest of Greece, celebrated for its pastures and its horses. 
Gr. 46. 1 and 3. A. & S. 54. — 60. Continuo = immediately, at 
once. It is to be connected with quo te77ipore primum, and with these 
words is = statim Mo tempore, or eo ipso tempore, quo primum = at 
that very time when first. Has. Gr. 439 and 1. A. & S. 205, R. 
2. Ex. Foedera = conditions ; i. e. that each country should have 
its peculiar character and productions. — 62. Deucalion — jactavit. 
See Ov. M. I. 318 foil., 399 foil. — 63. Durum genus. Cf. Ov. M. 
I. 414. 415. Ergo age. The subject of ploughing, interrupted by 
the digression at V. 50, is here resumed. — 64. Pingue is emphatic, 
as also is, fortes in the next verse. Where the soil is rich, the plough- 
ing should be early in the year and deep, thus requiring stout cattle. 

— 65. The rhythm of the line expresses the slow and laboring gait of 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 467 

oxen. Gr. 672. 2. A. & S. 310. 2. Jacentes = lying exposed. — 

66. Maturis = mature, strong, hot ; i. e. of midsummer heat. — 

67. Non . . . fecunda, opposed to pingiie in v. 64. Sub ipsum Arc- 
turum = toward, just before, the rising of Arcturus ; i. e. the 5th of 
September. See on Ov. M. II. 176. — 68. Tenui . . . suspendere 
sulco = to raise it with a light furrow (leaving it, as it were, hanging 
in air). — 69. Illic = in the former case; referring to vv. 64-66. 
Laetis. See on v. 1. Herbae = weeds. — 70. Hie = in the lat- 
ter case ; referring to vv. 67, 68. Are nam = soil. — 71. Alternis 
(sc. vicibus) = alternately ; i. e. every other year. Idem = at the 
same time, likewise ; implying that the rules already given do not 
exhaust the subject. Tonsas = reaped. Novales = fallow lands ; 
an instance of prolepsis (anticipation) ; the adjective representing that 
as already done which in reality is to follow as a consequence of the 
action of the verb on which its substantive depends. Cf. Ov. M. I. 
184 and note. — 72. Segnem = inactive, devoid of life, exhausted; 
i. e. by bearing the previous crop. Situ = by lying, by rest. Some 
understand it of the scurf (in this case, of the incipient sward) that 
forms on the surface of ground allowed to lie undisturbed. Dures- 
cere = to harden ; as the soil naturally does when not cultivated. 
Four methods of reinvigorating the exhausted soil are here men- 
tioned : 1st, by allowing it to rest every second year (v. 71) ; 2d, by 
rotation of crops (v. 73) ; 3d, by manuring (v. 80) ; 4th, by burning 
the stubble (v. 84). — 73. Mutato sidere ; because corn would not 
be sown at the same time of year as pulse. A sign or constellation (see 
on v. 1) is said to be changed when one comes in place of another. The 
meaning seems to be, that on the land where leguminous plants 
have been sown in the spring, corn may be sown in the following 
autumn ; though some understand it of the autumn of the following 
year. Farra (lit. spelt) may be taken for bread-corn in general. — 
74. Laetum siliqua. See on v. 1. Gr. 414. A. & S. 247. 1(1). 
Quassante = shaking, rattling. — 75. Tenuis = slender, slight. 
So called because its halm is so slender and its seed so small, com- 
pared with those of the bean or pea. Tristis = bitter. See II. 
126. Lupini; limiting calamos and silvam. — 76. Fragiles = 
brittle ; i. e. when dry. Calamos silvamque ; expressing the luxu- 
riance of the crop. Silvam sonantem = rattling growth. — 77. 
Urit = consumes, exhausts. The general sense is that the same 
crop, year after year, will exhaust the soil. Flax, oats, and poppies 
are specified merely as significant instances of this rule. The poet 
then adds that, though this is the tendency of these crops in them- 
selves, it is not so when they alternate with each other, if only the 
soil is renovated after each crop by plentiful manuring. Avenae ; 
sc. seges. — 78. Lethaeo = Lethean ; derived from Lethe, the river 



468 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

of oblivion in the lower regions. It is descriptive of the strongly- 
narcotic power of the poppy. — 79. Sed — labor = but still the 
task (of the field ; i. e. the strain on the field) will be light (if you 
sow) alternately. Alternis. See on v. 71. Arida = parched, 
exhausted. Tantum ne . . . pudeat =.only do not be ashamed. 
Shame restrains from excess in anything. — 82. Sic quoque is ex- 
plained by mutatis fetibus. Rest is gained by a change of crops as 
well as by leaving the land untilled. — 83. Nee modifies the whole 
sentence, and not nulla alone. Nulla . . . inaratae gratia terrae 
= the thanklessness of unploughed land ; i. e. of land lying fallow. 
Gratia is said of land which repays the labor bestowed on it. By 
rotation of crops, the land, being sown every year, has no period of 
thanklessness, or unproductiveness, as when it lies fallow every other 
year. — 84. Steriles agro ; i. e. from which the corn has been taken, 
leaving nothing but stubble. Incendere. Gr. 549. A. & S. 269. 
Profuit. See on v. 49. — 85. Atque . . . flammis. The dac- 
tylic rhythm expresses the lively crackling of the flames. See on v. 
65. — 86. Sive . . . sive . . . seu = whether . . . or ... or ; the 
various ways in which burning the stubble was supposed to act on 
the soil. The first only is the true one. — 88. Vitium = vicious 
quality. — 89. Plures . . . vias et caeca . . . spiramenta = 
more channels and hidden pores. — 90. Qua = where, by which. 
This relative adverb frequently refers to nouns either of the singular 
or plural number. Cf. A. V. 590. — 91. Durat. The object, of this 
verb seems to be the land itself rather than the pores. — 92. Tenu- 
es == subtle, penetrating. Pluviae ; sc. adurant (= noceant ) from 
adurat, which, however, belongs to it in sense only so far as it con- 
tains the general notion of injuring. The figure is called zeugma, 
and is very common. Gr. 704, I. 2. A. & S. 323. I (b) and (2) (a). 
Rapidi = scorching. — 93. Acrior. Gr. 444. 1. A. & S. 256, 
R. 9 (a). Penetrabile = penetrating. Frigus adurat. Uro and 
aduro are used of cold as well as heat, because some of its effects are 
analogous to those of heat. With frigus the verb may be rendered 
" freeze." — 94. Rastris. Our way, after breaking a field, is to give it a 
good tearing up with a heavy harrow with iron teeth, drawn by oxen 
or horses. The ancients used to break the clods by manual labor with 
a rastrum (a kind of heavy rake with iron teeth) ; and then, to pulver- 
ize it, the men drew over it bush-harrows (crates), nearly the same 
as now in use. Inertes = inactive ; i. e. unproductive (when left to 
themselves). — 96. Flava. This epithet was probably suggested by 
the golden hue of ripening corn. — Neque . . . nequidquam ; i. e. 
she does not regard him vainly, as if she were an idle spectator, or 
were unable to help. — 97. Et; sc. multuni juvat arva. Proscisso 
— aequore = which he raises in the first breaking up of the field. 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 469 

Proscindo is the technical term for the first ploughing. On aequore, 
see on v. 50. Gr. 430 ; 431. 2. A. & S. 257 and N. 1. Terga = 
the sods, ridges ; i. e. those made by the proscissio, or first ploughing. 

— 98. Rursus — aratro = with turned plough again breaks through 
(the ridges, terga) cross-wise. This cross-ploughing took place in the 
summer or early autumn, five or six months after the proscissio. — 99. 
Frequens. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 15 {a). Imperat ; i.e. acts 
like a master, makes his land obey him. — 100. Solstitia. = aestates. 
Cf. E. VII. 47. Here begins a new division of the subject. See in- 
troductory Analysis. — 101 Laetissima. See on v. 1. Pulvere. 
Gr. 414. A. & S. 247. 1 (1). Farra. See on v. 73. — 102. Nullo 

— messes ; i. e. as in a dry winter. Mysia; a most fertile region of 
Asia Minor, on the Hellespont, at the foot of the range (Ida) of which 
Mount Gargarus was the most conspicuous point. Cultu. Gr. 414. 
A. & S. 247. 1 (2). — 104. Ipsa ; i. e. not only is it celebrated by 
all others, but is even itself astonished at its own fertility. Gargara. 
Gr. 141, A. & S. 92. 1. — 104. Quid dicam ; sc. de eo: a form of 
enumeration, introducing a subject which is to be treated only curso- 
rily before hastening to another topic. It here implies commendation. 
Comminus = in close contest ; i. e. as soon as the seed is sown, at- 
tacking and levelling with the hand or rake the ridges (cumulos) of 
sand. The metaphor is from a soldier throwing his lance, and then 
coming to close quarters sword in hand. Some make comminus = im- 
mediately, without delay. — 105. Insequitur = pursues; implying 
persevering assiduity. Ruit = levels ; here used transitively. Cf. A. 
I. 35, 85. Male pinguis = -non pingitis ; i. e. barren, unfertile. — 
106. Satis — into the sown fields. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224 Sequen- 
tes ; because they follow whithersoever they are led. — 107. Mori- 
entibus — herbis = with its dying herbage is in a glow. Herbis ; 
not the grass, but blades of corn. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257. It would 
seem from vv. 106, 108 that the poet wished to indicate two modes 
of irrigating ; the one, for fields in a level country, where by means of 
a dam the water of a stream is brought in over them ; the other, for 
fields on a declivity, where the water is brought down on them from 
the springs near the summit. — 108. Ecce , at once giving the pic- 
ture and expressing the unexpected relief to the soil. Supercilio. 
Gr. 425. 2 and 3. 4 A. & S. 251. Clivosi tramitis = of its path- 
way down the hill ; i. e. from the brow of the hill, when used for irri- 
gation. 109 Levia, not levia ; implying that the path, or channel, 
has been often thus used. — 110. Ciet = wakes. Scatebris = 
with its bubbling rills. Temperat = tempers, cools, refreshes. — 
111. Quid , sc. dicam de eo. See v. 104. Aristis. Gr. 414 and 2. 
A. & S. 247. 1 (2). — 113. Quum — sata = as soon as the crops 
render the furrows level : i. e. as soon as the corn in the furrows is 



47° NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

as high as that on the ridges between the furrows. Quique ; sc 
quid dicam de eo. Paludis = of the pool ; i. e. of the stagnant water 
in the furrows. — 114. Arena. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. 
Referring either to ditches leading to a sandy place, where the water 
is absorbed, or to drains half filled with small stones or gravel, which 
take up the water as it passes along. — 115. Incertis mensibus ; 
the months when the weather is most changeable ; i. e. the spring and 
autumn ; here the spring. Gr. 426. A. & S. 253. — 116. Exit ; i. e. 
from its bed or banks. Cf. A. II. 496. Et — limo = and over- 
spreads all things far and wide with a coating of mud. Gr. 430 ; 
431 and 2. A. & S. 257 and N. 1. — 117. Unde — lacunae ; i. e. 
if the water is not drawn off before the sun . begins to act on it, it 
might rot the plants. Sudant ; as the water would be drawn up by 
the heat of the sun. Lacunae ; i. e. the furrows, the spaces between 
the ridges. — 118. Nee . . . nihil = somewhat, in some degree. Gr. 
585. A. & S. 277, R. 3. Quum = although. Haec . . . sint . . . 
experti = have tried these (expedients). — 119. Versando; like 
vertere, v. 2, with a further notion of frequency. Gr. 566. 3. A. & S. 
275. III. R. 4, N. 2, last sentence. Improbus = greedy, destruc- 
tive. — 120. Strymoniae ; because cranes abounded about the river 
Strymon in Thrace. Intuba = succory. It would be injurious both 
directly as a weed, and indirectly as attracting geese, which are fond 
of it. — 121. Umbra ; i. e. of trees and useless plants. Pater; Jupiter, 
who was king during the silver age, in which toil began, as Saturn had 
been in the golden. See on E. IV. 5 and 18 foil.— 122. Haud. Gr.584. 
3. A. & S. 191, R. 3. Primus; sc. illorum, qui mundum rexerunt. 
— 123. Movit= fecit moveri, arari: as a man is said to do the 
thing that he causes to be done. Mortalia corda = the intellects 
of men. The heart was frequently spoken of as the seat of thought 
and emotion. Acuens ; as we speak of sharpening the intellect. — 
124. Passus; sc. est. Sua regna; i. e. mankind over whom he 
ruled. — 125. Ante Jovem; i.e. ante Jovis regnum ; i.e. in the 
golden age. — 126. Ne . . . quidem. Gr. 602. III. 2. A. & S. 191, 
R. 3 {a). Signare ; sc. limite. Gr. 549 and 1. A. & S. 269 and R. 
2. — 127. In — quaerebant = they made acquisitions for the use 
of all ; i. e. what they acquired they put into a common stock. Ipsa. 
See on E. IV. 21 ; 23. — 128. Liberius ; i. e. than now. It seems 
to include both generosity and freedom from external constraint. 
Nullo poscente ; i. e. nullo cogente, is the cause of the liberius. Cf. 
E. IV. 18. —129. Virus. Gr. 47. II. A. & S. 51. Atris = deadly. 
It is a common epithet of serpents, and sometimes it is not easy to 
say whether it has its primitive sense of " black," or its derivative 
meaning of " deadly," though it may include both. Cf. E. IV. 24. — 
130. Lupos. Gr. 375. A. & S. 239. Wolves are used here for 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 47 1 

beasts of prey in general. Moveri = to swell, to be agitated. — 131. 
Mella — foliis ; i. e. so that men could no longer obtain it from that 
source. See on E. IV. 30. Ignemque removit ; i. e. hid it in 
the veins of the flint, so that ingenuity was required to force it out. — 
132. Passim; with currentia. Rivis. Gr. 414 and 3. A. &*S. 
247. 2. — 133. Usus = need, necessity. It is virtually personified ; 
whence meditando, which is = by reflection, study. — 134. Bt. We 
might have expected ut for et here, and et for ut (which is given by 
some MSS.) in the next line : Virgil, however, has chosen to vary 
the expression, coupling a particular fact with a general, and then 
subjoining a second particular, as a co-ordinate clause with the two. 
Sulcis, i. e. by ploughing. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247. 3. Fru- 
menti . . herbam. See on E. V. 26. — 135. Venus. Gr. 425. 2. 2). 
A. & S. 251. Abstrusum = that lay concealed (in them); lit. 
thrust away (by Jupiter). Cf. A. VI. 6. Excuderet. Cf. A. I. 174. 
— 136. Navigation then began, canoes being made by hollowing 
out trees. Cf. Ov. M. I. 94, 95 and notes. Sensere = felt the 
weight of. — 137. Navita turn. The further progress of navigation. 
Stellis — fecit = numbered the stars and gave them their names ; 
i. e. they divided them into constellations. Facere nomen alicui is a 
phrase to which numeros is here added by a kind of zeugma. Cf. 
Psalms, cxlvii. 4. — 138. Pleiadas ; seven stars in the neck of 
Taurus, called also Vergiliae, " quia vere oriantur." Cf. Hor. C. IV. 14 
21. They thus marked the beginning of the sailing season. The name 
is derived from n\eeiv, to sail. The word is here a tetrasyllable. 
Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. For the lengthening of the final syllable, see 
Gr. 669. V. A. & S. 309. 2 (1). — Hyadas. See on Ov. M. III. 595. 
The name is derived from veiv, to rain. — Lycaonis. Gr. 397 (1). 
A. & S. 211, R. 7 (1). — Arcton. See on Ov. M. II. 129, 171. 
Callisto, there mentioned, was a daughter of Lycaon, king of Arcadia. 
— 139. Captare . . . fallere. Gr. 549. A. & S. 269. — Fallere ; 
sc. aves, implied in the preceding /eras. — 140. Inventum ; sc. est. 
— Saltus = forest-pastures ; i. e. the glades or open spaces in 
forests, where cattle pastured and wild beasts wandered. They were 
hedged round in hunting by nets and watchers, to prevent the animals 
from breaking out. — 141. Fishing was also invented. Funda = 
with the casting-net. It was pear-shaped or conical, and was loaded 
with lead to make it sink. It was thrown forcibly into the water ; 
hence the verb verberat^= lashes. The English phrase, " whip the 
stream," is similar. — 142. Alta petens = seeking the deep parts ; 
i. e. of the river. Pelago. Gr. 422. 1. 2) ; 47, II. A. & S. 254, 
R. 3 ; 51. Lina = drag-net, seine. 

143. Ferri rigor =ferrum rigidum ; sc. venit {= provenit, inven- 
tus est), from v. 145 ; alluding to the hardening of iron for the manu- 



472 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

facturing of tools. The inversion of syntax, whereby the adjective 
idea is expressed by a noun of kindred meaning, is very common in 
all languages, and is frequently used by the poets with great effect ; 
as, " the might of Gabriel " (Milton) ; i. e. the mighty Gabriel. 
Atque = and particularly ; giving a single instance of the imple- 
ments that were then invented. This is a frequent practice with our 
poet. Serrae. The invention of the saw was attributed by some 
to Daedalus, by others to Perdix, his nephew. See on Ov. M. VIII. 
Introd. — 144. Primi ; sc. homines. — 146. Improbus = exacting, 
excessive. Some critics make it = persevering. See on Hor. C. III. 
24. 62. Egestas = want ; especially of food. This leads the poet 
back to his subject. — 147. Prima Ceres. The connection is as 
follows : Before the time of Jupiter there was no tillage (v. 125) ; but 
under his reign various arts were invented, and especially that of 
agriculture, by Ceres. See on v. 7. — 148, Glandes. See on v. 8. 
Sacrae is explained by Dodona. See on Chaonias, E. IX. 13. — 
149. Deficerent = began to fail. Silvae is the genitive limiting 
glandes and arbuta ; though some make it the subject of deficerent. 
Dodona, famous for its oak groves, is used poetically for the oaks 
themselves. — 150. Et = even ; to be construed with frumentis. 
Labor = injury, trouble, plagues. As examples of labor used of 
the sufferings of things inanimate, see v. 79, and II. 343, 372. Ad- 
ditus (sc. est) ; i. e. by Jupiter. Mala = baleful, destructive. Cf. 
v. 129. — 151. Esset. Gr. 291 ; 492. A. & S. 181 ; 262. — Robigo 
= blight, mildew. To avert it the Romans worshipped a deity named 
Robigus, or Robigo, whom they propitiated by a festival called Robi- 
galia. Segnis = unfruitful, worthless. — 152. Subit = comes up 
(in its stead). Silva. See on v. 76. It is explained by the two 
following nouns. — 154. Infelix . , . avenae. See on E. V. 37. — 
155. Quod nisi. See on E. IX. 14. Assiduis = assidtie. Gr. 
443. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a). Herbam. See on v. 69. — 157. 
Umbram ; i. e. the trees and foliage that make the shade. Votis. 
Vows were paid to Jupiter Pluvius. — 158. Acervum. Cf.v. 185. — 
159. Concussa . . . quercu = by shaking the oak ; i. e. for acorns. 
— 160. Dicendum ; sc. est mihi. Et = etiam. Anna = imple- 
ments, utensils, tools. Cf. A. 177. — 161. Quis sine. Gr. 187. 
1 ; 602. II. 1. A. & S. 136, R. 2 ; 279. 10 (a) and (f). Nee potuere 
= have never been able. For the perfect, see on v. 49. — 162. In- 
flexi is explained by vv. 169, 170. — Primum is often used in the 
beginning of an enumeration witkout a following deinde or turn, the 
office of which, however, is often performed by vero, etiam, autem, etc. 
Grave robur = the ponderous and strong ; lit. the ponderous 
strength : robur aratri for robustum aratrum, like ferri rigor, v. 143, 
and aeternaque ferri Robora, A. VII. 609. — 163. Tarda = tarde ; 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 473 

qualifying volventia. See on assidicis, v. 155. Eleusinae matris; 
i. e. of Demeter or Ceres, who was chiefly worshipped at Eleusis in 
Attica. She is called mater, probably in allusion to her name, De- 
meter, i. e. Mother Earth. — 164. Tribula, traheae ; two kinds of 
threshing-sledge ; the former of which consisted of a thick wooden 
board, which was armed underneath with pieces of iron or sharp 
flints, and drawn over the corn by a yoke of oxen, either the driver or 
a heavy weight being placed upon it, for the purpose of separating the 
grain and cutting the straw ; the latter, a kind of drag, sometimes 
used, was probably either entirely of stone or made of the trunk of a 
tree. Iniquo = immoderate, very great. Pondere. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. Rastri. See on v. 94. — 165- Virgea . . . su- 
pellex seems to include baskets, colanders, &c, as well as the hur- 
dles and the fan. Celei ; the father of Triptolemus and Demophon, 
and the first priest of Ceres at Eleusis. She instructed him in agri- 
culture and in the making of wicker-work implements. — 166. 
Crates. See on v. 94 Vannus = the winnowing-fan. This was 
a broad basket, into which the corn mixed with chaff was received 
after threshing, and was then thrown in the direction of the wind. It 
is called mystica, because at the celebration of the Eleusinian myste- 
ries it was carried in the processions in honor of Iacchus, the son of 
Demeter and Zeus, sometimes confounded with Bacchus (as in E. 
VII. 61), and sometimes distinguished from him. Bacchus was the 
son of Zeus and Semele. Ceres, Celeus, and Iacchus are here in- 
troduced to give a religious dignity to what might otherwise seem 
trivial. — 167. Multo. Gr. 418 and 1. A. & S. 256, R. 16 (3). 
Ante ; i. e. before they are needed. Memor provisa = carefully 
(mindfully) provided. Provisa repones = providebis et repones. Gr. 
579. A. & S. 274 3 (b). — 168. Digna = deserved, merited. 
Si nianet ; for si vis, ut te maneat. Divini ruris ; either as the 
abode of the rural deities, or, at least, as pleasing to them. — 169. 
Oontinuo in silvis = in the very woods. Continuo is explained by 
in silvis. The words can only mean that the young elm while yet in 
the woods is bent and made to grow in the required shape, whatever 
may be thought of the possibility of the thing, which Keightley denies. 
— 170. Burim = the plough-beam. Gr. 85. III. and 2. A. & S. 79. 
2. The buns was a piece of strong wood, naturally or artificially 
curved, to one end of which was affixed the pole, to the other the 
dentale, and into it was mortised the stiva. It therefore formed the 
body of the plough. Curvi . . . aratri. As the buris gave the 
characteristic bend to the plough, it is here called by the plough's 
name, aratri. — 171. Huic ; sc. bun. — Ab stirpe = from the lower 
part; i. e. of the temo. Connect with protentus. Temo = the pole. 
Sc aptatur. It was part of the plough, as well as of the cart or car- 



474 



NOTES ON VIRGIL. 



riage. The yoke was fastened to the end of it, and by means of it 
the oxen drew. Sometimes the temo was of the same piece of timber 
with the buris and share-beam {dentate), though not in the kind of 
plough here described. — 172. Aures = mould-boards. These rose 
on each side of the share {vomer), bending outwardly in such a man- 
ner as to throw on either hand the soil which had been previously 




Fig. I. — i. dentalia ; 2. burls; 3. temo; 4. stiva ; 5. manicula ; 6. vomer ; 
7. jugum ; a. funiculus ; b. clavus ; c. collare ; d. lora stibjtcgia. 
Fig. II. — The common ploughshare. 
Fig. III. — The dentalia alone. 
Fig. IV. — A plough with mould-boards, aratrum auritum ; 7, 7. aures. 



loosened and raised by the share, and were adjusted to the share - 
beam which was made double {duplici dorso) for the purpose of 
receiving them. Duplici . . . dorso. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. 
Dentalia = the share-beam ; a piece of wood fixed horizontally 
at the lower end of the buris, and to which the share was fitted. In 
some cases it was itself shod with iron. It is not certain whether it 
was one solid piece of timber, with a space to admit the end of the 
buris, or two pieces fastened on each side of it and running to a point. 
The plural dentalia is used by Virgil in speaking of one plough, but 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 475 

it is probably nothing more than a usual poetic license. — 173. Ante. 
See on v. 167. Jugo; a piece of wood, straight in the middle and 
curved towards both ends, which was attached to the end of the pole 
of the plough or cart, and went over the necks of the oxen. Fagus 
stivaque ; by hendiadys for stiva fagina. Gr. 704. II. 2. A. & S. 
323. 2 (3). — 174. Stiva = the plough-handle. The stiva was 
originally mortised into the hurts, but it sometimes formed one piece 
with it. It had a cross piece named mankula, by which the plough- 
man held and directed the plough. Cursus . . . imos = the lowest 
courses ; referring, perhaps, to the turning of the plough at the end 
of the furrow. Most editors read currtis (= carriage). Gr. 500. 
A. & S. 264. 5. — 175. Explorat = searches (i. e. dries) and tests. 

The above diagrams, illustrating Virgil's plough, are taken from 
the work of Schulz, De Aratri Romani Forma et Compositione. 

176. Possuni . . . ni refugis. Gr. 508. A. & S. 261. R. 1. 
Tibi. Maecenas is addressed throughout as the ideal reader. — 
177. Refugis ; i. e. from hearing, as in A. II. 12 from speaking. 
Observe the mood and tense : I can repeat . . . but I see you start 
of£ — 178. Cum primis = asa matter of the first importance, espe- 
cially. — 179. Vertenda maiiu. The earth had to be turned up and 
worked, or kneaded, with the hand. This operation really preceded 
the aequanda cylindro, as the preparation of the floor was the first 
thing. Gr. 704. IV. 2. A. & S. 323. 4 (2). Creta = argilla, as in 
II. 215. The clay was for the purpose of making it harden and bake. 
— 180. Pulvere ; for siccitate, effect for cause. — 181 Turn = et 
turn ; i. e. if the threshing-floor cracks. Illudant = may mock ; 
i. e. the threshing-floor and the husbandman's labor. See II. 375, 
where the goats are said to mock, to disport themselves with the 
young vine. Gr. 485. A. & S. 260. II. Pestes ; as injuring the 
floor and annoying the husbandman. — 182. Posuit . . . fecit ; 
aoristic perfects. See on v. 49. — 183. Oculis capti = blind ; lit. 
taken in the eyes. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. The expression seems 
to come from the use of capi, for to be injured 4 . The mole has eyes, 
though they are very small, and much covered over. Talpae. Gr. 
44. Ex. A. & S. 42. 2. — 184. Inventus; which is found in holes, 
and which therefore is likely to creep into holes. Bufo is said to 
occur nowhere else in the classics. Plurima. Gr. 453. 5. A. & S. 
206 (7) {a) and {b). — 185. Monstra = unsightly creatures ; some- 
times, as here, without reference to their size. Farris. Cf. on v. 
73. — 186. Senectae. Gr. 385. 3. A. & S. 223. Ants live but 
for a short time (supposed to be for one year only), so that senectae 
is a poetical expression for Ziiemi, which is the old age of their brief 
existence. It is well known that the ancients were in error about the 
habits of the ant, which has no storehouses, and remains torpid dur- 



47^ NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

ing the greater part of the winter. — 187. Contemplator. Gr. 537. 
II. A. & S. 267 (3). Nux = the walnut-tree. Some understand 
it of the almond-tree. Plurima = abundantly. — 188. Curvabit ; 
said by anticipation; for if the poet uses fetus of the blossoms, or 
embryo fruit, he may likewise speak of these bending the branches. 
— 189. Si — fetus; i.e. if a great number of the blossoms set, as 
the gardeners term it. — 190 There will be a very hot summer and 
a great threshing; i. e. an abundant harvest. — 191. Foliorum is 
emphatic, opposed to fetus; umbra, general. — 192. Nequidquam. 
Connect with teret. Falea. Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 250. 2. Teret 
area. The tritura was performed sometimes by the trampling of 
oxen, sometimes by the tribuhim or trahea (see on v. 164), sometimes 
by fustes, flails or sticks. — 193 - 203. Steeping seed-beans is a 
plan often pursued, to make the produce larger and easier to be 
cooked. But the best seeds will degenerate, unless you pick every 
year. It is the tendency of everything in nature, and only man's 
most strenuous efforts can counteract it. — 194. Nitro ; not our 
nitre, but a mineral alkali, carbonate of soda, and therefore used in 
washing. Amurca = lees of olive oil. — 195. Siliquis. Gr. 387. 
A. & S. 226. Fallacibus ; referring to the general character of the 
pods of beans, which in this particular case are to be less deceptive 
than usual. — 196. Quamvis — maderent = that they might be 
quickly cooked by a fire however small. Properata = propere ; 
lit. being hastened. — 198. Vis humana; i.e. homines. — 199. 
Quaeque. Gr. 458. 1. A. & S. 207, R. 35 {b). — 200. Ruere 
. . . referri. Gr. 545. 1. A. & S. 209, R. 5 and N. 7. Trans- 
late, a are accustomed," etc. Retro — referri = slipping away 
to be borne backward. Retro is often used pleonastically with 
verbs beginning with re. Cf. A. II. 169. — 201. Flumine. Gr. 
431. A. & S. 257. — 202. Subigit. Cf. A. VI. 302. — 203. 
Atque, according to Gellius and Servius, is = statim, but it is 
better to connect it with remisit, and give it its usual significa- 
tion. Virgil does not expressly introduce an apodosis in such 
comparisons, but makes his whole sentence depend on the quam or 
si which follows the non aliter or haud secus following the simile. Cf. 
A. IV. 669. Ilium is doubtless the lembus, which is distinguished 
from the rower. Wr. accounts for atque by supplying retro sublapsus 
refertur before it, and making the whole into an apodosis, but he 
quotes no similar instance. Alveus = the current. Amiii. Gr. 
87. III. 3. A. & S. 82. Ex. 5 (a). —204-207. The husbandman 
must observe the rising and setting of the constellations as atten- 
tively as the sailor. — 204. Arcturi. See on Ov. M. II. 176, 
and cf. v. 68. Nobis. Gr. 388. I. A. & S. 225. III. — 205. 
Haedorum = the Kids, or Goat. See on Ov. M. III. 594. An- 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 477 

guis. See on Ov. M. II. 138. — 206. Quam quibus = as (by 

those) by whom. Vectis = euntibus. The Latin having no present 
pass, part., the perf. part is sometimes used in a present sense. — 
207. Pontus; sc. Euxinus. Fauces . . . Abydi; i.e. Helles- 
pontics. Abydos was a town on the Asiatic shore of the Hellespont, 
opposite the European Sestos. Oysters are still found there. — 208. 
Libra ; i. e. the Balance, between Scorpio and Virgo. See on v. 
33. Die. Gr. 119. 4. A. & S. 90. 2. Pares. The sun was in 
Libra at the time of the autumnal equinox, when the days and nights 
were of equal duration, and when the Roman hours were, of course, 
equal too. Fecerit Gr. 473. A. & S. 145. VI. — 209. Et — 
orbem=and already divides the globe equally for light and dark- 
ness ; i. e. gives both the northern and southern hemispheres an 
equal amount of day and night. — 210. Tauros = doves. — 211. 
Usque — imbrem = even to the first rain of the impracticable 
(i. e. when no work can be done) winter solstice. Extretmtm may 
be used of either end ; here the beginning. — 212. Segetem; used 
proleptically for the seed. Cereale ; because sacred to Ceres, who 
was represented with poppies in her hands. She was said to have 
calmed her grief for the loss of her daughter Proserpina by eating its 
seeds. — 213. Humo. Gr. 47. 2. 2) ; 414. A. & S. 49. 1 ; 247. 
Tegere. Gr. 563. 6. A. & S. 275. III. N. 1. Jamdudum = at 
once, without delay. Cf. A. II. 103. Incumbere; like cicrvus 
arator, E. III. 42. — 214. Tellure. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). 
Pendent ; i. e. they do not yet come down in rain. — 215. Med- 
ica (sc. herba) = lucerne ; introduced into Greece from Media at 
the time of the invasion of Darius. Putres ; because they have lain 
fallow through the winter. — 216. Annua cura; to distinguish it from 
lucerne, which required to be sown only once in ten years. — 217, 
218. A periphrasis for vere. — 217. Candidus. The allusion, 
according to Keightley, is to the milk-white bulls with gilded horns 
which appeared in the triumphal processions at Rome. Aperit 
is illustrated by the etymology of Aprilis. Cornibus. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. Whether auratis cornibus is meant to be taken 
descriptively with taurus, or instrumentally with aperit, is not clear. 
The former seems more reasonable, as there would be no natural 
propriety in the image of a bull using his horns to open a gate. The 
horns are called auratis, because there are bright stars at their tips. 
— 218. Canis; i. e. Sirius. a star of the first magnitude in Canis 
Major. This star sets heliacally, i. e. is lost in the effulgence of the 
sun, a few days after he has entered Taurus. It is therefore said to 
give way {cedens) to this sign. Adverso astro ; sc. Tauro. Gr. 
384. A. & S. 223. The bull is represented as driving the dog be- 
fore him ; the dog, however, keeping his face to the bull. — 219. 



47^ NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

Robusta = hardy. — 220. Solis ; as opposed to the produce just 
mentioned, vv. 215, 216. Aristis = bearded grain. Gr. 386. A. & S 
224. — 221. Ante . . . quam. Gr. 523. 2). Eoae— in the morn- 
ing. Atlantides = the daughters of Atlas ; i. e. the Pleiades. See 
on v. 138. Gr. 316. A. & S. 100. 1 and (b). These set in the 
morning, according to different authorities, from Oct. 20 to Nov. 11. 
— 222. Gnosia = Cretan ; from Gnosus, a city of Crete, of 
which island Minos, father of Ariadne, was king. Stella Coro- 
nae ; i. e. the constellation Coro?ia Borealis, said to have been 
Ariadne's crown, placed among the stars by Bacchus, after he mar- 
ried her. Stella = sidus, as in Hor. C. III. 29. 19. — 223. Com- 
mittas . . . properes. Gr. 523. II. A. & S. 263. 3. — 224. In- 
vitae ; because conscious that she is not yet ready to receive the 
seed. — 225. Maiae ; one of the Pleiades, here standing for the 
group, as Taygete in Ov. M. III. 595. — 227. Vilem ; on account 
of its abundance. — 228. Pelusiacae = Egyptian ; from Pelusium, 
a town at the mouth of the eastern branch of the Nile. Egypt was 
famed for lentils. — 229. Mittet = dabit. Bootes. See on Ov. 
M. II. 176. — 231. Idcirco; i. e. that the seasons should be clearly 
marked for the husbandman. Certis . . . partibus ; referring to the 
twelve divisions of the zodiac. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. 
Orbem (sc. annuum) = (his yearly) circle. Cf. Annuus orbis, A. V. 
46. — 232. Duodena = duodecim. The poets often use distribu- 
tive for cardinal numerals. Cf. A. I. 393. Regit. Cf. airsus rege- 
bam, A. VI. 350, and Nulla viam fortuna regit, XII. 405. Mundi 
. , astra == the constellations of the celestial sphere. — 233. Coe- 
lum ; because the zones of heaven answer to the zones of earth, and 
determine their character. — 234. Ab igni ; instead of the ordinary 
abl. of cause. — 235. Extremae ; i.e. the frigid zones. Dextra. 
Gr. 441. 3. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (1). — 236. Glacie. The mention of ice 
seems more appropriate to the earthly than the heavenly zones ; but 
Virgil was doubtless thinking of the sky as the parent of ice. — 237. 
Duae ; i. e. the temperate zones, which alone the ancients supposed 
to be habitable. — 238. Via ; i. e. the ecliptic. Per = inter ; as the 
sun never enters the temperate zones. So v. 245, per duas Arctos. — 
239. Obliquus; with se verteret. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a). 
Obliquus ordo is the zodiac, the constellations of which it consists be- 
ing arranged along the ecliptic which cuts the equator obliquely at an 
angle of about twenty-three and a half degrees. Cf. Ov. M. II. 130 
foil. Se . . . verteret = might revolve. Gr. 500. A. & S. 264. 
5. — 240. Mundus. See on v. 232. Scythiam; used for the 
North generally, as often in the poets. Rhipaeas. The Rhipean 
mountains were supposed to separate the land of the Hyperboreans 
from the rest of the world. Here these countries are made to stand 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 479 

for the northernmost point, not only of earth, but of the mundane 
system, as Libya for the southernmost. Arduus ; referring to the 
elevation of the north pole, as premihir, etc., does to the depres- 
sion of the south pole. Cf. Ov. Trist. IV. 10. 108. — 242. Hie 
vertex ; i. e. the north pole. Ilium ; i. e. the south pole. — 243. 
The infernal regions were supposed to be in the centre of the earth ; 
so here they are said to be over the south pole. Sub pedibus is to be 
connected with videt, the feet being those of Styx and the Manes ; 
but videt of course does not mean that the south pole is actually 
visible from the shades. — 244. Hie ; i. e. at the north pole. Flexu. 
Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Anguis. See on v. 205. 
Elabitur = shoots out : not the same as labitur. — 246. Metuen- 
tes — tingui ; i. e. they never set. See on Ov. M. II. 172. — 247. 
Illic ; i. e. at the south pole. Ut perhibent ; for the southern 
hemisphere was wholly unknown to the ancients. Aut . . . aut; 
i. e. either the southern regions are in total darkness, or they have 
day when we have night. — 248\ Obtenta . . . nocte = by the 
overspreading pall of night. — 249. Redire, reducere, recurrere, re- 
ferre, and other words of the sort, are constantly used of the recur- 
ring order of nature. — 250. Primus. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 
15 (a). Oriens j sc. Sol. Cf. A. V. 739. The horses of the sun 
come panting up the hill, casting their breath, which represents the 
morning air, on the objects before them. — 251. Rubens may mere- 
ly mean bright, or the color of sunset may be naturally transferred to 
the star. Lumina ; Vesper's own rays, not the light of sunset, as 
Voss thinks, taking Vesper generally of evening, nor the other stars, 
as others interpret it. — 252. Hinc seems to refer to the whole of 
the preceding passage from v. 231, which has been devoted to an ex- 
position of certain parts of the mundane system. Virgil now en- 
forces the conclusion : "It is on the strength of this that we know 
beforehand," etc. Tempestates = the changes of the weather. 
Dubio . . . coelo = though the (appearance of the) sky may be 
doubtful. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). — 254. Infidum is sig- 
nificant, as showing the importance of knowing when to venture on 
the sea. — 255. Conveniat. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Armatas 
= rigged. Deducere = to launch. Cf. A. III. 71 ; IV. 398. The 
ancients drew their vessels up on the shore during the winter. See 
on Hor. C. I. 4 2. — 256. Tempestivam ; with evertere. Gr. 443. 
A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a). — 257. Vv. 257, 258 belong to what pre- 
cedes, coming in fact under hinc, which is the introduction to the 
whole paragraph. — 258. Temporibus. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. 
Parem is intended to contrast with diversis. The seasons are diverse, 
yet they make the year uniform. 

259. Weather which is bad for ordinary out-door purposes is good 



480 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

for other things. — 260 Forent . . . properanda = would have to 
be done in a hurry ; contrasted with maturare, to get done in good 
time. Coelo. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). —261. Maturare. 
Gr. 549. A. & S. 269. Procudit = sharpens by hammering. — 
262. Arbore ; i. e. ex arbore. Gr. 425 and 1 and 3. 4). Lintres ; 
troughs into which grapes were put after the vintage. — 263. Pe- 
cori signum. Branding cattle was done with boiling pitch, gener- 
ally towards the end of January and April. Numeros — acervis 
= puts numbers on the heaps (of corn) ; i. e. to indicate the quantity 
contained in them. Impressit. Gr. 704. I. 2. A. & S. 323. 1 (b) 
(2) (a). On the tense see on v. 49. — 264. Vallos furcasque ; 
probably intended to support the vines. See II. 359. — 265. Ame- 
rina . . . retinacula= Amerian bands ; i. e. willow bands, for tying up 
the vine. Amerina, from Ameria, a town of Umbria, famous for its 
willows, which have a slender red twig. — 266. Facilis = pliant. 
Texatur Gr. 487 ; 488. I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. — 267. Torrete ; 
i. e. to make the corn easier to grind. See A. I. 179. Igni. Gr. 87. 
III. 3. A. & S. 82, Ex. 5 (a). — 268. Quippe = for. The connec- 
tion seems to be thus : You should not be idle on wet days, for even 
on holidays some kinds of work are permitted. — 269. Fas et jura 
= divine and human laws. Rivos deducere ; either to let on the 
water from the reservoirs for the purpose of irrigation, or to draw off 
the superabundant water from the fields. The former is probably 
meant, since it would be a work of daily necessity in hot weather. — 
270. Religio = religious scruple. Vetuit ; aoristic perfect. See on 
v. 49. Segeti — saepem. Columella says that the pontiffs forbid 
the making of hedges for corn on holidays. Forb. and Keightley 
suppose that old hedges might be repaired, though not new ones 
made ; but that does not appear to be Virgil's meaning. — 271. In- 
sidias — moliri seems to refer to snaring mischievous birds, as ordi- 
nary bird-catching would not be a work of necessity. — 272. Balan- 
tum ; i. e. when they are washed. Salubri is emphatic, as the 
washing is to cure disease, not for cleansing the wool, which was not 
allowed on holidays. — 273. Markets were also held on holidays (as 
they are still on Sundays in the south of Europe), at which the coun- 
try-people could sell their farm produce. Agitator aselli ; not the 
asinarius or ass-driver, but the peasant who happens to drive the ass 
to market. — 274. Vilibus. See on v. 227. — 275. Incusum = in- 
dented ; i. e. that it may crush the corn better. Massam picis ; i. e. 
for marking cattle, securing casks, repairing vessels, etc. — 276. Of 
lucky and unlucky days. Ipsa — operum = the moon herself has 
made different days favorable in respect of (agricultural) labors in 
different degrees ; i. e. all days are not equally lucky. Ordine. Gr. 
414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 277. Operum. Gr. 399. 3. 4). 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 48 1 

A. & S. 213 and R. 1 (a). Cf. infelix animi, A. IV. 529. Quintam; 
sc diem. Gr. 120, Ex. A. & S. 90. 1. Orcus ; the same as Hades 
or Pluto, the god of the lower world. He is called pallidus on ac- 
count of the ghastliness of death. — 278. Eumenides, also called 
Erinyes, and by the Romans Furiae or Dirae, were originally nothing 
but a personification of curses pronounced upon a guilty criminal. 
Aeschylus calls them the daughters of Night ; and Sophocles, of 
Scotos (Darkness) and Ge. No prayer, no sacrifice, and no tears 
could move them, or protect the object of their persecution. They 
dwelt in the deep darkness of Tartarus, dreaded by gods and men. 
With later writers, though not always, the number of Eumenides is 
limited to three, and their names are Tisiphone, Alecto, and Megaera. 
See also on Ov. M. X. 46. Turn has its ordinary sense. It appears 
to be added here because it had been omitted in the previous clause. 
279. Coeum Iapetumque. These were Titans, the sons of Terra 
and Uranus, the number of whom was twelve. Typhoea. See on 
Ov. M. V. 348. The last two syllables are contracted into one in 
scanning. Gr. 669. II. A. & S. 306. 1. — 280. Rescindere. Gr. 
552. A. & S. 271, N. 3. Cf. onE. V. 1. Fratres. See on Hor. C. 
III. 4. 41 - 48. The slowness of movement in this and the following 
line well expresses the efforts of the giants. The non-elision of the i 
and the o and the shortening of the latter are in imitation of the 
Greek rhythm, and are appropriate where the subject, as here, re- 
minds us of Greek poetry. — 282. Scilicet = for indeed, truly. 
Agreeably to its etymology (scire licet), scilicet introduces an expla- 
nation or development. Here it introduces the details of the con- 
spiracy of the giants. — 283 . Pater ; Jupiter. — 284. Septimam 
post decimam = the seventeenth. Ponere. See on E. V. 1. — 
285. Prensos domitare —prendere et domitare. Licia — addere 
= to add the leashes of the woof to the warp ; i. e. to weave. — 286. 
Fugae, referring probably to fugitive slaves, against the escape of 
whom the husbandman is warned to be on his guard on that day, 
while he need not watch against thieves. — 287. Adeo, like the Greek 
particle ye, adds emphasis to the word to which it is joined. Se 
. . . dedere = allow themselves to be done ; i. e. may be done. See 
on v. 49. — 288. Sole novo = early in the morning, at sunrise. 
Gr. 426. A. & S. 253. Eous ; the morning star, put by metonymy 
for the morning itself. Stipulae. The ancients in their reaping 
usually cut off the heads of the corn, leaving the straw to be cut 
about a month later. Arida prata ; opposed to those which could 
be irrigated. The reason for these precepts is, that the dew makes 
the straw and grass resist the scythe. — 290. Noctes. Gr. 371. 
A. & S. 229. Lentus expresses the effect of the moisture on the 
grass rather than the nature of the moisture itself. — 291. Quidam ; 
31 



482 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

like est qui, Hor. E. II. 2. 182, as if Virgil knew the man, but did not 
choose to name him. Luminis ; of fire-light ; though some prefer 
to understand it of lamp or torch-light. — 292. Inspicat ; i. e. makes 
into the form of an ear of corn, the end of the wood being cut to a 
point and split into various parts. — 293. Solata = solans. See on 
v. 206. — 294. Pectine ; the comb, the teeth of which were inserted 
between the threads of the warp, and thus made by a forcible impulse 
to drive the threads of the woof close together. Its office was the 
same as that of the reed or sley among us. — 295. This verse is 
hypercatalectic, the final em being elided by the first vowel of the 
next verse. Gr. 663. III. 4). A. & S. 304 (4) ; 307. 3. Vulcano. 
See on Ov. M. II. 5. Vulcanus is often used, as here, for fire. Gr. 
705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. Decoquit. Must was boiled down to 
carenum, defrutum, or sapa, on a night when there was no moon. — 
296. Foliis. Leaves were used, commonly those of the vine, for 
skimming the boiling must, as it was thought that wooden ladles or 
spoons gave it a smoky taste. Trepidi . . . aeni. The boiling must 
imparts a quivering motion to the vessel itself. — 297. Ceres ; by 
metonymy for corn. Rubicunda. See on v. 96. Medio . . . 
aestu = in the midst of the heat (of summer). Elsewhere in Vir- 
gil it means midday, but since that is precisely the time which the 
reaper would avoid, the rendering we have given seems best here. 
So frigoribus mediis, E. X. 65, means midwinter. — 298. Aestu; 
not to be connected with tostas. — 299. Nudus ; i. e. without 
the upper garment. Hiems ; the rainy season of about a fort- 
night before and a fortnight after the winter solstice. Colono 
seems to refer strictly to the labors of cultivation, as other works 
for winter follow, v. 305. So perhaps agricolae in next verse. 

— 300. Frigoribus ; i. e. hieme. Parto = what has been acquired ; 
i. e. in the other seasons of the year. — 302. Genialis. According 
to Italian notions every man had his guardian spirit or Genius, which 
it is difficult to distinguish from himself. When, therefore, he in- 
dulged himself in feasting, etc., he was said to indulge his Genius, 
and whatever was connected with this indulgence was called genial. 
The month of December, as the season of festive enjoyment and re- 
laxation after the year's labors, was held specially sacred to each per- 
son's Genius. Cf. Hor. E. II. 2. 187 ; A. P. 210. — 303. Pressae 
= heavy laden. — 304. Sailors, on their return from a successful 
voyage, especially if it was a long and hazardous one, used to put 
garlands on the sterns of their ships when they came into port. — 
305. Quernas ; because glans was used of other fruits than acorns. 
Stringere. Gr. 563. 6. A. & S. 275. III. N. 1. Cf. tegere, v. 213. 

— 306. Myrta. Myrtle berries were used for mixing with wine, 
which was called myrtites, and used medicinally. Cruenta; from 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 483 

their juice. — 307. Gruibus. Cranes were a delicacy of the table ; 
but the husbandman might naturally snare them in self-defence. See 
v. 120. — 308. Auritos = long-eared. — 309. Stuppea . . . verbera 
= the tow thongs. Torquentem, agreeing with colonum, the omit- 
ted subject ace. of stringere and all the following infinitives. Balea- 
ris. See on Ov. M. IV. 709. It is merely an ornamental epithet. 

— 311. Tempestates seems fixed by sidera to mean weather rather 
than storms, the latter notion being left to be inferred. Sidera. Cf. 
v. 204 foil. — 312. Mollior ; i. e. less oppressive. — 313. Quae ; sc. 
dicam. Vigilare aliquid is to bestow wakeful care on a thing. Viris. 
Gr. 388. I. A. & S. 225. III. Vel ; sc. dicam quae vigilanda viris. 
Ruit = comes down. — 314. Spicea . . . messis = the bearded 
harvest. — 317. Culmo. Gr. 428. A. & S. 21 1, R. 6. — 318. Om- 
nia ventorum . . . proelia ; for j>roelia omniwn ventorum ; the 
winds all blowing at once, as in A. I. 85. — 319. Quae ; tanta ut ea. 
Late ; with eruerent. — 320. Sublimem. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 
15 (a). Expulsam eruerent; a hysteron-proteron for expeilerent 
erutam, and = expeilerent et eruerent. Gr. 704. IV. 2. A. & S. 323. 4 
(2). Gr. 579. A. & S. 274. 3 (b). Ita (= so, thus) probably in- 
troduces a comparison between the hurricane that roots up the corn 
(gravidam segetem) and an ordinary gust which whirls about the stub- 
ble (culmumque levem stipulasque volantes) • but Wr. and Forb. make 
ferret depend on quae, and give ita the sense of turn. — 321. Hiems ; 
the winter's storm in opposition to the summer blast just described. 

— 322. Coelo. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. — 323. Foedam — tem- 
pestatem = thicken the foul weather ; or, taking glomerant with 
foedam, = thicken the weather into foulness. — 324. Ex alto = 
from on high. Some make ex alto = from the deep, but it is more 
probable that Virgil meant to represent the clouds as mustered from 
on high, collectae, like glomerant, keeping up the military associations 
already introduced by agmen. Ruit . . . aether; like aether descendit, 
II. 325, coeli ruina, A. I. 129, an image explained by Lucr. 6. 291 : 
Omnis uti videatur in imbrem vertier aether. " Down crashes the 
whole dome of the firmament." — 325. Sata — labores. Cf. A. 
II. 306. — 326. Cava ; because during the summer in Italy there is 
little or no water in the beds of most of the rivers. — 327. Fretis 
spirantibus = in its breathing inlets. The violent heaving of the 
waves against the shore is compared to human breathing. — 328. 
Pater. See on v. 121. Nocte is not to be taken literally. Co- 
rusca goes with dcxtra and = coruscante. — 329. Molitur generally 
implies effort in the agent or bulk in the object, or both. Quo . . . 
motu ; i. e. quibus commota ; referring to the sense rather than to 
the words of the preceding sentence. A demonstrative or relative 
pronoun is often joined by a kind of attraction to a following substan- 



484 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

tive in such a way that the notion expressed by this substantive is 
considered as already implied in the foregoing part of the sentence. Cf. 
Quo gemitu, A. II. 73 ; ea signa dedit, A. II. 171 ; hie nuntius esto, A. 
IV. 237. Gr. 453. A. & S. 206 (17). — 330. Fugere. The perfect 
expresses instantaneousness. Cf. exiit, II. 81. So stravit. The rain 
pours down in torrents, the lightning flashes, the earth trembles, and 
instantly, there being no appreciable interval of time between the 
cause and the completion of the effect, the wild beasts have fled, &c. — 
331. Humilis qualifies stravit. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a). 
Some take it with pavor in an active sense and = causing humility. 

— 332. Athon ; a high mountain, on the Strymonian Gulf, in Mace- 
donia. Gr. 46 and 3. 2). A. & S. 54. Rhodopen ; a high mountain 
range in Thrace. Gr. 43. A. & S. 44. Ceraunia ; a range of moun- 
tains in Epirus. Alta Ceraunia is a half-translation of 'AicpoKepavvia, 
i. e. thunder-peaks. Telo ; i. e. a thunderbolt. — 333. Ingemi- 
nant. It is observed that the rain and wind increase after a thun- 
derclap. — 334. Plangunt = wail ; intransitively. — 335. Coeli 

— sidera. The months of heaven are the signs of the zodiac, through 
each of which the sun is about a month in passing ; and sidera are 
those other constellations whose rising and setting influenced the 
weather. The next two lines merely give instances of the things to 
be observed. — 336. Frigida ; because of its distance from the sun. 
Sese . . . receptat. Wch. and Forb. take this as strictly literal : 
" returns to the place whence he has just started " ; but it seems to 
refer more generally to the motions of the planet among the stars. 
Servius says that Saturn when in Capricorn caused heavy rains, and 
when in Scorpio, hail. Receptat . . . erret. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. 

— 337. Ignis Cyllenius ; i. e. Mercury ; so called from Cyllene, 
a mountain in Arcadia, the reputed birthplace of the god. Ignis ; from 
its brilliancy and nearness to the sun, in contrast, perhaps, with fri- 
gida Saturni stella. Coeli ; with orbes ; i. e. the circuit of the planet 
through the heavens. — 338. As another means of averting the in- 
juries caused by the violence of storms, the husbandman is directed 
to attend to the worship of the gods, especially Ceres. See on v. 7. 
Annua . . . sacra ; the festival of the Ambarvalia. See on E. III. 
76. — 339. Refer expresses recurrence. See on v. 249. Opera- 
tus = sacrificing. For the present force of the part, see on v. 293. 

— 340. Extremae. Gr. 441. 6. , A. & S. 205, R. 17. Sub casum 
= immediately after the end. — 341. Mollissima = most mellow ; 
i. e. with age. — 342. The second clause explains the first ; i. e. it is 
pleasant to sleep in the thick shade on the mountains. — 343. Tibi 
Gr. 389. A. & S. 228, N. {a). Adoret. Gr. 488. II. A. & S. 260, 
R. 6. — 344. Baccho. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. — 345. Felix 
= auspicious ; i. e. acceptable to the gods. — 346. Chorus et socii; 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 4S5 

i. e. chorus sociorum. — 347. In tecta = to their houses. Neque 
ante. It is not easy to decide whether this is merely an additional 
admonition to celebrate the Ambarvalia, as an indispensable prelim- 
inary to the harvest, or an injunction to perform a second set of 
rites in summer time. — 349. Tempora. Gr. 380 and 1. A. & S. 
234. II. Quercu, i. e. in memory of man's first food. — 350. In- 
compositos = rude, uncouth. — 351. Haec refers to the nouns in 
the next line. — 352. Frigora is the important word, and is con- 
trasted with aestus and pluvias. — 354. Austri ; for winds in gen- 
eral. — 355. Stabulis. Gr. 392 and 2. A. & S. 228 and 1. — 
356. Ventis surgentibus are the important words. The prognos- 
tics of wind follow. Freta ponti ; poetically for pontics. — 357. 
Agitata tumescere = to be agitated into a swell. — 359. Misceri 
is explained by resonantia, which serves instead of an abl., like mur- 
mure, A. I. 124 ; tumultu, A. II. 486. — 360. Jam . . turn = even 
then. A curvis. For a with tempero cf. A. II. 8. Male = 
scarcely. The storm is close at hand. — 362. Marinae; opposed to 
in sicco. — 365. Vento impendente ; emphatic, like ventis surgen- 
tibus, v. 356. — 366. Umbram flammarnm. Gr. 595. A. & S. 
279. 5. — 367. A tergo = behind them. Albescere. Gr. 332. II. 
and 2. A. & S. 187. II. 2 and (a). — 368. Volitare. Gr. 332. I. 
and 1. A. & S. 187. II. 1 and (b). — 369. Summa. Gr. 441. 6. 
A. & S. 205, R 17. — 370. Signs of rain. Boreae . . . Eurique 
Zephyrique ; i. e. when there are thunders and lightnings from all 
parts of the sky, three winds being put for all. — 371. Eurique. Gr. 
669. V. A. & S. 309. 2 (1). Domus ; as if each of the winds had 
a home in the quarter of the heavens from which it blows. — 372. 
Fossis. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). — 373. Humida; i. e. 
with the rain. Imprudentibus = unwarned ; because the signs 
are so numerous. — 374. Vallibus, with fugere. Gr. 422 and 1. 
A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 375. Aeriae ; contrasted with vallibus imis. 
Fugere. See on v. 49. So captavit and the other perfs. in this pas- 
sage. — 377. The swallow is always observed to fly low before rain, 
because the flies and other insects on which she feeds keep at that 
time near the surface of the ground and the water. Arguta = twit- 
tering (as she flies). — 378. Veterem . . . querelam = their old 
plaintive note. Fetus is here used, just like our old, of what is re- 
peated in the same unvarying manner ; as we say : " an old story,'' 
etc. — 379. Tectis penetralibus. Cf. adytis penetrahbus, A. II. 
297. — 380. Angustum . . . iter. Cf. calle angusto, A. IV. 405. 
Terens is illustrated by saepius. Bibit — arcus. The ancients 
supposed that the rainbow drew up water from the sea, rivers, etc., 
which afterwards fell in rain. — 381. Agmine. Gr. 414 and 3. 
A. & S. 247 and 2. — 382. Densis . . . alis = with crowded wings ; 



486 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

i. e. they fly close together. — 383. Volucres. Gr. 545. A. & S. 
239. Asia . . . prata = the Asian meads ; a tract of land in Lydia, 
in Asia Minor, on the banks of the Cayster, which often overflowed 
them. Dulcibus = fresh ; in opposition to those of the sea, just 
mentioned. Circum ; adverbial. — 384. Rimantur = try in every 
chink, search, rummage ; i. e. for food. Caystri ; with stagnis. — 
385. Infundere. Gr. 551. I. and 1. A. & S. 272. Rores; i. e. 
they make it into spray. — 386. In undas = into the waves, to 
meet the waves. — 387. Incassum = wantonly. Videas. Gr. 
485. A. & S. 260. II. — 388. Improba = villanous, good for 
nothing ; because the crow invites the rain. — 389. Spatiatur ex- 
presses the stately, leisurely pace of the crow. The alliteration, as 
in the preceding verse, gives the effect of monotony. — 390. Ne . . . 
quidem. Gr. 602. III. 2. A. & S. 279. 3 {d). — 391. Testa = 
earthen lamp. — 392. Scintillare = to sputter. Putres . . . fun- 
gos ; the thick snuff which gathers on the wick because of the damp- 
ness of the air. 

393 -423. Signs of fair weather ; first negatively, vv. 395 -400, 
and then affirmatively, vv. 401 - 423. — 393. Ex = after. Soles 
= sunny days. Serena = serene skies. — 395. Acies is the 
sharply defined edge, or outline, of the stars, which is not blunted or 
dimmed by floating vapors. — 396. Obnoxia — beholden. — 397. 
Tenuia. Gr. 669. II. and 3. A. & S. 306. 1 and (3). Lanae . . . 
vellera = fleecy clouds ; lit. fleeces of wool. — 398. Non — pan- 
dunt ; i. e. do not sit on the shore drying their wings. — 399. Di- 
lectae Thetidi ; possibly because the lovers were changed into Hal- 
cyons by Thetis ; but it is simpler to say " loved by her as sea-birds." 
Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. See on E. IV. 32. Solutos . . . jac- 
tare , i. e. ita itt jactando solvanhir ; i. e. toss them to pieces. — 403. 
Nequidquam = without purpose, aimlessly ; like incassum ; i. e. 
a prolonged objectless effort. The more common interpretation is : 
'.' in vain, to no purpose "; i. e. though an ill-omened bird, the owl 
with all her hooting will not be able to bring foul weather. But it 
seems clear that Virgil intends to mention the screeching of the night- 
owl as a sign of fine weather. — 404. Liquid o = clear ; i.e. after 
the storm. Nisus was king of Megara, and on his head there grew a 
purple lock which was the safeguard of his life and of his city. But 
when his daughter Scylla had fallen in love with Minos, king of 
Crete, who was besieging Megara, she cut off the lock from her 
father's head as he slept, and thus betrayed both him and his city into 
the hands of the enemy. Minos, however, did not reward her as she 
expected, but allowed her to perish miserably. After death Nisus was 
changed into a sea-eagle, or osprey, and Scylla into the ciris, a kind 
of lark, or, according to others, a hawk. — 406. Aethera. Gr. 93 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 487 

and 1. A. & S. 80 and R. — 408. Qua — auras. Keightley ex- 
plains these words of the greater bird having missed his pounce, and 
thus being obliged to soar into the air in order to make a second, 
while the smaller escapes as fast as it can. — 410. Liquidas = soft, 
clear ; opposed to raucas. As the ravens, by hurrying home, v. 381, 
announced rain, so their remaining at home, cawing and flying about 
their nests, is a sign of fair weather. Presso . . . gutture ; ap- 
parently opposed to plena voce, v. 388. — 413. Imbribus actis = 
when the rain is driven away, when the rain is spent. — 415. An 
allusion to the Pythagorean, Platonist, and Stoic spiritualism, accord- 
ing to which there was a portion of the divine mind in all animated 
beings, and which Virgil here rejects in favor of the Epicurean and Lu- 
cretian materialism, which admitted the existence of nothing but matter 
and its modifications. Divinitus is distinguished from fato, as the 
poet is evidently alluding to the language of different philosophies, 
fato pointing to the Stoic doctrine. Illis. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. 

— 416. Ingenium = an intelligent principle. Rerum — major 
= a deeper (i. e. deeper than men have) insight into things by fate. — 
417. But the true explanation is, that, as the atmosphere is con- 
densed or rarefied, the organs and powers of animals are variously 
affected : in fine weather they become cheerful ; in bad weather the 
reverse. Coeli = of the atmosphere. — 418. Mutavere vias 
(= have changed their courses) is explained by mobilis, the weather 
and the atmospheric moisture being supposed to shift. Juppiter. 
See on E. VII. 60. Juppiter uvidus austrts denotes the condition of 
the atmosphere before the change. Austris; with uvidus. — 420. 
Species = phases ; a materialistic word. Keightley and Forb. make 
it = habits, disposition. Motus ; also materialistic. — 421. Alios 

— agebat = other sensations than (those which they received) while 
the wind was driving onward the clouds. The second alios is gov- 
erned by concipiebant understood, and the sentence, alios, dum — age- 
bat, is to be construed parenthetically. The change from low to high 
spirits being the point, the second alios is logically = quam, and 
does not denote a co-ordinate difference. — 422. IUe. Gr. 450. 5. 
A. & S. 207, R. 24. 

424- 460. Prognostics of the weather may be obtained by observ- 
ing the appearances of the sun and moon. — 424. Rapidum. See 
on v. 92. Sequentes = following (each other). Lunas might be 
either the daily or monthly moons, but primum and ortu quarto favor 
the former meaning. — 425. Ordine. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 
2. —426. Hora = dies. Gr. 705. III. A. & S. 324. 3. Insidiis — 
serenae. Cf. A. V. 851. A night clear at first often terminates in 
rain. — 427. Revertentes = returning (to her); i.e. when she be- 
gins to fill anew. — 428. Aera ; the air seen between the horns of 



488 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

the crescent moon. We should say, " there is a halo round the 
moon." Cornu; for cornibus. — 429. Agricolis pelagoque ; for 
agris pelagoque, or agricolis nautisque. — 430. Virgineum ; an 
allusion to the virginity of Diana. SufTuderit ore ruborem ; an 
inversion of suffuderit os rubor e. On ore, see Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 
254, R. 3. — 431. Vento. See on Zephyro, v. 44. Phoebe (= 
Luna) ; a surname of Diana as the goddess of the moon, the sister 
of Phoebus, the sun. Cf. Ov. M. II. 208. — 432. Auctor = indi- 
cation, presage. — 435. Exactum ad mensem = to the end of 
the month. — 436. Servati ; i. e. that have come safe to port : not 
preserved from peril, as if tliere had been a storm. In litore. Cf. 
A. V. 236. — 437. Glauco . . . Panopeae. When a long final 
vowel or a diphthong is not elided, it is regularly made short, if in 
the thesis. The exception to this rule in the case of Glauco is a 
license not indulged in by Virgil elsewhere. Gr. 669. I. and 2. 
A. & S. 305 (1) and (2). Glaucus was a Boeotian shepherd, who 
threw himself into the sea from the effects of an herb which he had 
eaten : he afterwards became a sea-deity. Panopea, or Panope, was a 
sea-nymph, daughter of Nereus and Doris. Melicertae. Meli- 
certes, a son of Athamas and Ino, who, with his mother, fell into the 
sea, was metamorphosed into a marine divinity, under the name of 
Palaemon. — 439. Sequuntur = attend. — 440. Refert. See on 
v. 249. — 440. Astris. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 441. Nascen- 
tem — ortum = his first rising. — 442. Conditus. Condo is 
naturally constructed here, as in v. 438, as a verb of motion, since 
it means strictly not to hide, but to throw together or into. Cf. 
conjicio, contorqueo. Medio — orbe = and shall have retired in 
respect to the middle of his disc ; or, and shall have receded from 
the middle of his disc (to the circumference) ; i. e. when the centre 
of the disc is covered by clouds and only the edge appears. Gr. 
429, or 425. A. & S. 250. 1, or 251. —443. Tibi. Gr. 388. II. 
A. & S. 225. II. Ab alto = from on high ; or it may be, from 
the deep. See on ex alto, v. 324 — 445. Sub lucem = just 
after daylight. Sese . . . rumpent = erumpent. — 446. Diversi 
= scattered. Tithoni ; a son of Laomedon, and brother of Priam. 
By the prayers of Aurora, who loved him, and carried him off to the 
seats of the immortal gods, he obtained from Jupiter immortality, 
but not eternal youth ; in consequence of which he completely 
shrunk together in his old age ; whence an old decrepit man was 
proverbially called Tithonus. Cf. A. IV. 585. Aurora ; the goddess 
of the morning, who brings up the light of day from the east. At the 
close of night she rose from the couch of her beloved Tithonus, and 
on a chariot drawn by swift horses she ascended up to heaven from 
the river Oceanus, to announce the coming light of the sun. See 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 489 

also on Ov. M. II. 144. — 449. Male. See on v. 360. — 449. 
The rhythm of this verse admirably expresses the rattling of hail 
on the roof. Gr. 672. 2. A. & S. 310. 2. — 450. Hoc prob- 
ably refers to what goes before ; meaning either generally the 
sun's significance, or specially the fact just noted, that being 
taken as a type of the others, which are supposed to be yet more 
significant in the evening than in the morning. Olympo. See on 
E. V. 56. — 451. After nam understand turn = at evening. — 454. 
Maculae must relate to caeruleus, igni to igneus. Immiscerier. 
Gr. 239. 6 ; 703. 6. A. & S. 162. 6 ; 322. 6. — 455. Vento nim- 
bisque. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 456. Fervere, an 
older form than fervere, of which Virgil is fond. He also uses effervo, 
strido, andfulgo. Non. Gr. 488. 3. A. & S. 260, R. 6 {b). — 457. 
Moneat. Gr. 488. II. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Convellere funem = 
to pluck up the cable with (the anchor). Gr. 558. VI. 2. A. & S. 
273. 2 (e). — 458. Condetque relatum = and shall bury it (i. e. 
conceal it, close it) after he has brought it back ; i. e. at his setting. 
— 460. Claro ; because it makes the sky clear and bright. — 461. 
Quid ; i. e. what sort of weather. Unde ; i. e. a qua coeli parte. 
Serenas . . . agat nubes ; i. e. agat mtbes ita ut serenum sit coelum. 
Serenas is opposed to hwiiidus. — 464. Audeat. Gr. 485. A. & S. 
260, R. 5. Tumultus has here its political sense of a sudden alarm 
of war, generally in Italy or Cisalpine Gaul, when all citizens were at 
once called out. Gr. 558. VI. 2. A. & S. 273. 2 {c).— 465. Frau- 
dem = unseen danger, treachery. — 466. Miseratus ; sc. est; i. e. 
by the friendly warnings which he gave of the evils that were yet to 
come. See on Hor. C. I. 2. Introd. — 467. Ferrugine ; the dark 
color of the sun under eclipse. An eclipse of the sun occurred in No- 
vember of the year in which Caesar was murdered. — 468. Sae- 
cula = race. — -469. Tellus ; i. e. by earthquakes. See vv. 475, 
479. — 470. Obscenae = ill-omened. Importunae = inauspi- 
cious. — 471. Cyclopum ; lit. creatures with round or circular eyes. 
According to the ancient cosmogonies the Cyclopes were the sons of 
Coelus and Terra : they belonged to the Titans, and were three in 
number, and each of them had only one eye on his forehead. In 
the Homeric poems the Cyclopes are a gigantic, insolent, and law- 
less race of shepherds, who lived in the southwestern part of Sicily, 
and devoured human beings. A still later tradition regarded the 
Cyclopes as the assistants of Vulcan. See on Ov. M. II. 5, and Hor. 
C. I. 4. 7, 8. Effervere. See on v. 456. — 472. Undantem, re- 
ferring to the lava. Fomacibus is suggested by Cyclopum. Join 
it with effervere. Gr. 425 and 3. 4). A. & S. 251. — 473. Lique- 
facta . . . saxa. Cf. A. III. 576. The lava hardens into stone. 
— 474. Germania ; i. e. the Roman garrisons on the Rhine. These 
garrisons were said to have seen armies of horse and foot fighting in 



490 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

the air (armorum sonitum), and to have heard the sound of trum- 
pets summoning to battle. This portent is explained by some as 
an exaggerated report of the appearance of the aurora borealis, which 
is often attended with a crackling sound. — 475. Motibus. The 
belief of the ancients that earthquakes took place in the Alps from 
time to time, is confirmed by modern experience, though Heyne sug- 
gests that avalanches may have been mistaken for them. — 476. 
Per lucos vulgo ; ideoque per multos lucos. Lucos shows that the 
voice was divine. — 477. Simulacra ; i. e. the shades of the de- 
parted. Modis. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 478. Ob- 
scurum. Gr. 441. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (1). — 479. Infandum (= un- 
utterable horror) calls attention to its peculiar horror. Sistunt; 
intransitive. The cause of sistunt ainnes is given in terrae dehiscunt, 
the earthquake. Terrae ; implying that there were numerous 
earthquakes. — 480. Templis. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. 
Illacrimat . . . sudant. The moisture of the atmosphere ex- 
plains both. Ebur, aera ; i. e. ivory and bronze statues. Gr. 705. 
III. A. & S. 324. 3. — 482. Fluviorum. Gr. 669. II. 3. A. & S. 
306. 1 (3). Rex ; because the largest of the rivers of Italy. Eri- 
danus; the Greek name of the Po. — 483. Cum — tulit. Cf. A. 
II. 499. — 484. Extis. The ancients used to derive auguries from 
the appearance of the exta (i. e. the heart, lungs, and liver) of the 
victim. Fibrae, according to Varro and Servius, are the extrem- 
ities of the liver. — 485. Cessavit. Gr. 463. I. A. & S. 209, 
R. 12 (3). — 486. Resonare; sc. non cessaverunt. Lupis. Wolves 
entering Rome are several times mentioned by Livy as portents. — 
487. Coelo. Gr. 425 and 3. 4). A. & S. 251.— 488. Cometae. 
Meteors in general are probably meant, as comets do not usually 
appear in numbers. 

489. Ergo ; i. e. as foreshadowed by these portents, civil war broke 
out. Paribus ; because they were Romans on both sides. — 490. 
Iterum ; with concurrere. Philippi ; a city in Macedonia, on the 
borders of Thrace, celebrated for the victory gained there in B. C. 42, 
by Augustus and M. Antony over the republican army of Brutus and 
Cassius, and for the fact that it was the first place in Europe where 
St. Paul preached the Gospel, in A. D. 53. — 491. Nee — superis = 
nor was it in the eyes of the gods an undeserved punishment ; i. e. 
for our crimes. Superis. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. — 492. Ema- 
thiam . . . Haemi campos, referring, though not with geographical 
accuracy, to the sites of the two battles of Pharsalia and Philippi. 
Emathia, originally the name of a district in the southern part of 
Macedonia, and afterwards of Macedonia, is here extended so as to 
cover Thessaly, in the southern part of which was the city of Phar- 
salus, near which Caesar conquered Pompey in B. C. 48. Haemus is 
a range of mountains in Thrace, now called the Great Balkan. 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK I. 49 1 

Haemi campos is intended to include the city of Philippi, which was a 
considerable distance south of the Haemus. — 493. Scilicet et = 
yes, and. — 496. Rastris. See on v. 94. — 497. Grandia . . . ossa. 
It was the opinion of the ancients, at least of the poets, that the gener- 
ations of the human race successively degenerated in size and strength. 
Effossis ; i.e. broken into by the plough or harrow. — 498. Dii 
patrii are not the same as Indigetes. The former are the protecting 
gods of the country, the Lares and Penates, as opposed to those in- 
troduced from foreign nations ; while the latter are Italian heroes 
deified after death, as Picus, Janus, Aeneas, etc. Of the former class 
Vesta is given as an example, and of the latter, Romulus. Et is to 
be supplied. Romule ; the founder and first king of Rome, wor- 
shipped after his death as Quirinus. Vesta ; the goddess of the 
hearth, and also of fire. Her worship was introduced into Italy by 
Aeneas. The fire on the altar in her temple was never allowed to go 
out. The priestesses dedicated to her service were called Vestals. — 
499. Tuscum Tiberim; so called because rising in the Apennines, 
in the district of Etruria or Tuscia. Gr. 85. III. 1. A. & S. 79. 1. 
Palatia. The Palatine was the hill of Romulus and his city ; and 
afterwards Augustus took up his residence there. — 500. Saltern; 
as the gods had snatched away Julius Caesar. Juvenem ; Octavi- 
anus Caesar, afterwards Augustus, who was then about 27 years of 
age. See on Hor. C. I. 2. 41. Saeclo. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224 — 
502. Luimus perjuria. See on Hor. C. III. 3. 22. Laomedonteae 
is used reproachfully, implying guilt. Cf. A. IV. 542. Luimus . . -. 
invidet . . . queritur. Gr. 467. 2. A. & S. 145. 1. 2. — 505. Quippe 
— nefas = because among them (icbi = apud quos ; sc. homines) 
right and wrong have been inverted ; i. e. have exchanged places. 
Quippe assigns the reason why heaven grudges Caesar to so thankless 
a sphere. Bella... facies; sc. sunt. — 506. Aratro. Gr. 387. A.&S. 
226. The abl., however, is possible. — 507. Dignus = fitting, suit- 
able. Abductis ; i. e. to serve as soldiers. — 508. Conflantur = 
are forged. — 509. Euphrates; i. e. the Parthians dwelling on the 
banks of the Euphrates, against whom Antonius was then engaged in 
war. See on E. I. 63. — 510. Ruptis — legibus = breaking the laws 
that bound them together. — 511. Arma ferunt = are in arms. 
Impius is emphatic, as most of the wars of the time were connected 
directly or indirectly with the civil conflict. — 512. Carceribus. 
The carceres were a range of stalls at the end of the circus, with gates 
of open wood-work, which were opened simultaneously to allow the 
chariots to start. — 513. Addunt in spatia = they give them- 
selves to the course, bound onward over the course ; supplying sese 
from the preceding line. The plu. spatia is employed because the 
match included more than one circuit. — 514. Currus ; i. e. eqici. 



492 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 



THE GEORGICS. Book II. 

The main subject of the Second Book is the culture of trees, 
especially the vine. But there is no great regularity in the mode 
of treatment. Virgil opens with an enumeration of the different ways 
of propagating trees, natural and artificial, so as to give some notion 
of the magnitude of the theme ; then shows how art can improve 
upon nature, and recurs again to the manifoldness of his subject, 
dwelling especially on the innumerable varieties of vines. Without 
much relevancy he talks of the trees which are indigenous to different 
countries, and thence digresses into a eulogy of Italy, which he does 
not fit with any practical application. The question of the aptitudes 
of various soils is treated far more widely than the subject of the 
book requires, embracing the choice of corn and pasture land, as 
well as of ground for planting vines and other trees. For the next 
160 lines the poet seems to- be thinking exclusively of the vine, or of 
the trees planted in the arbustum as its supporters. He does not 
distinguish between the different modes of rearing the vine, but in 
general appears to assume that the arbustum will be the means 
adopted. He speaks of the vine and its supporters almost indiffer- 
ently, as objects more or less of the same culture, so that, while 
keeping the former prominently before him, he feels himself at liberty 
to use general language, or even to confine his language to the latter, 
as metrical convenience or poetical variety may suggest ; a manner 
of speaking which renders this part of the book peculiarly difficult. 
The olive, which was put prominently forward in the programme of 
the book, is actually disposed of in a very few lines, as requiring 
hardly any culture at all, while the other fruit-trees are dismissed 
even more briefly. The remaining trees receive a very hasty recom- 
mendation to the cultivator, backed however with an assurance that 
they are even more useful to man than the vine. In the celebrated 
digression which concludes the book, the laborious aspect of a 
country life, elsewhere so prominent, is studiously kept out of sight, 
and we hear only of ease, enjoyment, and plenty. 

The beauties of this book have always been admired, and deserv- 
edly so. They are most conspicuous in the digressions ; but the 
more strictly didactic part contains innumerable felicities of expres- 
sion, though it may be doubted whether in general they do not ob- 
scure the practical meaning as much as they illustrate it. 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 493 



ARGUMENT. 



I. Subject of Second Book ; and invocation of Bacchus, god of 

the vine and of fruit-trees generally (1 - 8). 
JI. Trees and plants ; their modes of propagation (9 - 34) : — 

1. Natural mode (10-21), viz. : spontaneous growth 

(10-13); by seed (14-16); from root of parent 
trunk (17- 19). 

2. Artificial mode (22-34), viz.: by suckers (22-23); 

by stocks or settings (24, 25) ; by layers (26, 27) ; 
by the trunk cut into "lengths" (30, 31) ; by en- 
grafting (32-34). 

III. Invocation, and detailed directions as to peculiar kinds of 

treatment necessary for different trees and plants 
(35-82):- 

1. Introductory address to husbandmen, and invocation of 

Maecenas (35-46). 

2. Means of improving trees of natural growth (47 - 60). 

3. How to employ artificial means of propagating (61 - 82). 

IV. The differences in trees and plants (83 - 135) : — 

1. Variety of species (83- 108). 

2. Soils suited to different kinds (109- 113). 

3. Trees peculiar to certain countries (114- 135). 
V. Episode in praise of Italy (136- 176). 

VI. Soils ; their nature, capabilities, and indices (177-258) : — 

1. Soils suited to the olive (179-183) ; to the vine (184- 

194) ; to cattle rearing (195 - 202) ; to corn crops 
(203-211); to almost no production (212-216); 
to any purpose (217-225). 

2. Index to loose or close soil (226-237) ; to salt and 

bitter (238-247) ; to the rich and fat (248-250) ; to 
the moist (251 -253) ; to the heavy and light (254, 
255) ; to the black (255) ; to the cold (256-258). 
VII. The vine (259-419) : — 

1. Directions for the preparation of the ground and for 

planting (259-353): trenches (259-264); nursery 
(265 - 268) ; setting of slips (269 - 287) ; depth of 
trenches (288 - 297) ; miscellaneous cautions (298 - 
314 ; time for planting (315-322) ; praises of spring 
323 -345) ; manuring and airing of young plants 

(346-353)- 

2. General culture and treatment after planting (354-419) : 

soil at roots to be kept open, fine, and fresh (354 - 



494 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

357); props (358-361); pruning (362-370) ; hedges 
(371 -396) ; ploughing of vineyard and other operations 

(397-419)- 
VIII. Various other trees and plants (420-457) : the olive (420-425) ; 
fruit-trees (426-428) ; wild forest-trees (429—457). 
IX. Blessings and happiness of a country life (458 - 542). 

1. Hactenus ; sc. cecini. Arvorum cultus is the general subject 
of Book I. — 2. Bacclie. Bacchus had the charge not only of the 
vine, but of fruit-trees generally. Silvestria . . . virgulta means 
those barren forest-trees, such as the elm, poplar, etc., which were 
planted to act as props whereon to train the vine shoots ; so that 
there may be a special propriety in tecum. Virgulta (for virguleta, a 
number of twigs, hence applied to bushes, or low or young trees), 
here seem to be taken as the type of such trees as the husbandman 
cultivates. — 4. Hue ; sc. veni, from v. 7. Pater is applied to Bac- 
chus as the god of fertility, and because he conferred benefits on man 
with the kindness and generosity of a father. Lenaee ; an epithet 
of Bacchus, signifying god of the wine-press. Tuis — muneribus. 
Virgil fancies himself surrounded by the gifts of autumn, of which 
he is going to sing. — 5. Tibi = for thee. See on I. 14. Here it 
seems to express the acknowledgment of nature to its author and 
sustainer. Pampineo . . . autumno == with the viny autumn ; i. e. 
with the grapes which autumn is yielding. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. Gravidus. Gr. 669, V. ; 672. 3. A. & S. 309 (1) ; 
310. 1. — 6. Floret (= blooms) ; in allusion, according to Forb., 
Voss, and Keightley, to the various hues of the grapes and other 
fruits. Vindemia = the vintage. Labris. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 
254, R. 3. — 7, 8. The poet, in his enthusiasm, represents himself 
and the god as entering the wine-press together and treading out the 
grapes. In the East (see Isaiah lxiii. 1 - 3), and in Greece and Italy, 
the grapes were trodden out by men with bare feet. The practice 
still prevails in many parts of the south of Europe. — 8. Cothurnis. 
Bacchus was usually represented wearing the cothurni or hunting 
buskins. — 9. Arboribus . . . creandis. See on G. I. 3. Natura 
= the law of nature, the natural mode. — 10. Hominum. Gr. 396. 
III. 2. 3). A. & S. 212, R. 2. Ipsae and sponte sua are a tau- 
tology. — 11. Veniunt. See on I. 54. — 12. Curva, by calling 
attention to the bends of the river, shows that the trees grow along 
its side. — 13 Canentia; in allusion to the white down that covers 
the under side of the leaf. Fronde. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. 
Salicta. See on E. I. 55. — 14. Posito ; i. e. casually from the 
trees. Surgunt. Gr. 461 and 1. A. & S. 209, R. 11. —15. Ne- 
morum = arborum nemorensium. Gr. 396. III. 2. 3) (2). A. & S. 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 495 

212, R 2. Jovi; like tibi, v. 5. The oak was sacred to Jupiter. — 
16. Habitae , « . oracula = regarded as oracles. Graiis. Gr. 
388. II. A. & S. 225. II. Oracula. Gr. 362 and 2. 2). A. & S. 
210, R. 3 (3) (c). Quercus; the oak-groves at Dodona. See on E. 
IX. 13. — 17. Pullulat, etc. ; propagation by natural suckers. 
Aliis. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. — 18. Parnasia ; because the laurel 
was sacred to Apollo, whose temple of Delphi stood at the foot of 
Mount Parnasus. — 19. Se subjicit = shoots up. — 20. Primum ; 
i. e. before man had tried experiments. His ; sc. modis. — 22. Alii ; 
sc. modi. Ipse . . . usus ; i. e. experience alone, without the example 
of nature. Via = by method, by a regular course or process. Voss, 
followed by Forb. and Keightley, personifies usus, and makes via = 
on her way, in her progress. — 23. Plantas = suckers. — 24. De- 
posuit. See on I. 49. Stirpes, sudes, and vallos denote the 
same thing differently treated : stirpes, the stock along with some of 
the root ; sudes and vallos, rods or larger branches from the parent 
tree set into the ground like stakes, the former split into four parts 
( quadrifidas ) at the lower end to form a root, and the latter sharpened 
to a point (acuto robore). — 25. Robore. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, 
R. 6. — 26. Silvarum = arborum. Gr. 396. III. A. & S. 212. 
Arcus ; the bows which the depressed layers form. — 27. Viva ; 
because not separated from the parent stem. Sua . . terra ; i. e. in 
which they themselves grow. — 28. Summum . . . cacumen ; i. e. 
a cutting from the very top of the tree. — 29. Referens = restoring ; 
i. e. to its native earth. — 30. Quin et = nay even. Caudicibus 
sectis. The root and branches were lopped off from the trunk, 
which was then cut across into pieces or " lengths " ; and these were 
planted either whole, or split up before planting. Dictu. Gr. 570 
and 1. A. & S. 276. III. — 31. Radix oleagina; a specimen of the 
trees thus grown. — 32. Impune = without damage (to the quality of 
either tree). — 34. Prunis = on plum-trees. Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 
254, R 3. Corna; cornel cherries, which are of a beautiful red 
color. The epithet lapidosa shows that corna is not put for comos, as 
some think ; and rubescere, too, would be inapplicable to a change 
from the redder fruit to the less red. — Quare ; i. e. since art can do 
so much. Generatim = according to their kinds ; i. e. the kinds of 
trees. — 37. Ismara (plu. of Ismarus) ; a mountain in Thrace. Bac- 
cho = vitibus. — 38. Taburnum ; a mountain on the confines of 
Samnium and Campania. — 39. Una; sc. mecum. Decurre=run 
through. A naval metaphor. Laborem. Gr. 371. 1. 3). A. & S. 
232 (1). Cf. A. V. 862, Currit iter tutum. — 40. Decus . . . pars. 
Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. '-41. Maecenas. See Life of Virgil. Gr. 369. 
A. & S. 240. Pelago = on Hit to) the sea. It may refer metaphori- 
cally to the extent, the /»i£«dkssness, of the subject. Gr 384 and II. 



496 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

A. & S. 223. — 42. Cuncta = the whole subject. — 43. Non ; sc. 

optem amplecti, or amplectar. Sint. Gr. 503 and III. A. & S. 261. 2. 

— 44. Primi — Oram = coast along the very edge of the shore ; 
since he does not design to go thoroughly into the subject. Primi 
litoris or am =primam litoris oram = the first part of the edge of the 
shore. Litus denotes the shore only as the line which separates the 
land from the sea, i. e. as the strand ; ora, as the space and tract of land 
that borders on the sea, i. e. as the coast. Litoris ora, is, therefore, ora 
per litus externa. — 45. In manibus terrae = the land is at hand ; 
carrying out the metaphor of the preceding line. Carmine ficto = 
by feigned strains ; i. e. by a mythical poem, such as were then in 
vogue. Ambages — exorsa. He thus designates the length of 
those poems and the involutions of their plots. — 47. A return to the 
threefold division of trees naturally produced (see vv. 10 - 19) ; each 
of which kinds is shown to admit of improvement by cultivation. — 
48. Laeta = luxuriant. — 49. Quippe — subest refers only to 
laeta et fortia, not to infecunda. Solo. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. 
Natura = a natural productive power. Subest = is latent ; lit. is 
underneath. Tamen must relate to infecunda, to which silvestrem 
animum is clearly parallel. — 50. Mutata = transplanted. Sub- 
acids = carefully prepared ; i. e. with the spade. — 51. Exuerint. 
Gr. 473. 1 ; 511. II. A. & S. 259, R. 1 (5). A.mmum = naturam. — 
52. Artes = artificial modes of culture. They will learn whatever 
lessons you choose to teach. — 53. Sterilis; sc. arbor from v. 57. 
The reference is to a sucker. See v. 17. Sterilis is the general de- 
scription ; quae stirpibus exit ab imis, the characteristic. Imis. Gr. 
441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. — 55. Nunc; i.e. in its natural state. 

— 56. Crescenti = when growing up. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224, R. 2. 
Fetus =fructus. Ferentem — when bearing (fruit) ; i. e. wither 
up the productive powers it exerts. — 57. Jam = moreover. This 
use of jam (nearly = praeterea) is not uncommon. Seminibus 
jactis. See on v. 14. — 58. Venit ; as in v. 11. Seris nepotibus. 
Cf. v. 294 and E. IX. 50. — 59. Foma; all kinds of fruit. — 60. 
Turpes = unseemly. Avibus praedam ; i. e. because no men will 
pick them. Uva; for vitis. — 61. Scilicet = the fact is. It is ex- 
planatory. Omnibus ; sc. arboribus. Cogendae in sulcum = 
drilled into the trench ; conveying the notion of training and disci- 
pline. Multa mercede = at great cost ; i. e. of labor. Gr. 416. 
A. & S. 252. — 63. Truncis . . . propagine. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 
247 and 3. Truncis ; answering to the caudicibus sectis of v. 30. — 
64. Solido . . . de robore answers to stirpes, sudes, and vallos, vv. 
24, 25. Paphiae ; because sacred to Venus, who was worshipped at 
Paphos, a city in the island of Cyprus. Myrtus. Gr. 1 17. 2. A. & S. 
89 [b). — 66. Herculeae — coronae ; i. e. the poplar. See on E. 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 497 

VII. 61. — 67. Chaonii patris ; i. e. Jupiter of Dodona in Chaonia. 
See on E. IX. 13. Glandes = quercus. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. 
The oak was sacred to Jupiter. — 68. Nascitur ; sc. plantis. Abies. 
The fir was much used for ship-building ; hence casus visura marinos. 
69. Nucis; i.e. the walnut. Horrida ; from the roughness of the 
stem. Fetu. Gr. 414 and 4 A. & S. 247 and 3. — 70. Steriles; 
opp. to pomifera. Gessere =gerere solent. See on I. 49. So in- 
canuit andfregere. — 71. Castaneae ; sc. albo fiore. Fagus. Gr. 
669. V. A. & S. 309 (1). It may, however, according to Wr. and 
Forb. be the nom. pi. of the 4th decl. and subject of incanuerunt 
understood, incanuit agreeing with the nearer noun. — 73, Inserere. 
Gr. 563. 6. A. & S. 275. III. N. 1. See I. 213. Simplex = unus ; 
i. e. inoculation is distinguished from engrafting ; they are not one. — 
75. Tunicas = the inner coats ; i. e. of the bark : that which is un- 
der the cortex. — 76. Sinus = cavity, slit. — 80. Et. Cf. A. III. 9. 
A remnant of primitive simplicity of expression, which sometimes 
gives more force to a passage than the employment of a more formal 
connecting particle. — 81. Exiit. See on I. 330. — 82. Sua. Cf. 
E. I. 38. — 83 - 108. There are varieties in each kind of tree, the 
olive, the apple, and the pear, and especially the vine, the diversities 
of which are innumerable. — 84. Que. See on v. 87. Idaeis ; from 
Mount Ida in Crete, whence the cypress was said to have been 
brought into Italy. — 86. Orchades and radii appear to be so 
named from their shape. The orchades are oblong, the radii are long 
like a weaver's shuttle. Fausia is a kind of olive which requires to 
be gathered before it is ripe : hence amara bacca. Bacca. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 87. Que is disjunctive, as often in excited or 
emphatic narrative. Nor are apples, etc., of one sort any more than 
olives. Alcinoi silvae = the orchards of Alcinous. Alcinous was 
king of the Phaeacians, in the island of Corcyra, and is celebrated by 
Homer in the Odyssey for the beauty of his gardens. Silvae = ar- 
bores. See on v. 26. — 88. Crustumiis ; so called from Crustu- 
merium or Crustumium at the conflux of the Allia and the Tiber. 
Servius says they were partly red. Syriis. Servius and Pliny say 
they were black. Firis. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Volemis ; so 
named, it is said, because they would fill thevo/a or hollow of the hand. 
— 89. Arboribus. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. Arbos, here 
and in vv. 267, 278, 300 is probably the silvestria virgulta of v. 2, on 
which see note. Vindemia = uva. — 90. Methymnaeo ; from 
Methymna, a town in the island of Lesbos, which was famous for the 
excellence of its wine. — 91. Thasiae ; from Thasos, an island off 
the coast of Thrace, celebrated for its corn, wine, and mines. Mareo- 
tides ; from Lake Mareotis, near Alexandria in Egypt. — 92. Hae 
. . . illae = former . . . latter. Gr. 452. 2. A. & S. 207, R. 23 {b). 
32 



498 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

Habiles = adapted to. — 93. Fasso ; sc. vino = vino e passis uvis 
facto. Psithia . . . Lageos. These terms are Greek, and designate 
two different kinds of vine, but their meaning is not well known. Te- 
nuis = subtile, spiritous, intoxicating. — 95. Preciae = early ripe. 

— 96. Rhaetica; sc. vitis. Rhaetia was a region of the Alps (the 
modern Tyrol), but it was considered to extend into Cisalpine Gaul, 
and it was in the neighborhood of Verona that the grapes grew which 
the poet here praises. Nee = nee tamen. Falernis. The wine of 
the Falernian district, in Campania, enjoyed the highest reputation. 

— 97. Aminaeae. These wines are said by Aristotle to have been 
introduced into Italy by a Thessalian tribe called Aminaei. They 
were cultivated chiefly in the neighborhood of Naples. Firmissima 
= very strong. Vina, by a peculiar species of apposition, = pro- 
ducing wines. Cf. fines . . . genus, A. I. 339. — 98. Tmolius — 
Phanaeus = to which the Tmolian and the Phanaean itself, the prince 
of wines (rex), rise up to pay homage. Virgil speaks in Greek 
fashion, ohos being implied. Tmolius is from Tmolus, a mountain 
in Lydia, producing excellent wine ; Phanaeus, from Phanae, a har- 
bor and promontory in the Isle of Chios, which produced the cele- 
brated Ariusian wine, which is here styled rex. See on E. V. 71. 
Some supply mons. — 99. Argitisque minor. This vine, of 
which there were two kinds, a major and a minor (so named from the 
size of the grapes), is said to derive its name from dpyos, white, re- 
ferring to the color of the grapes. Cui. Gr. 385. 5. A. & S. 223, 
R. 2. Certaverit. Gr. 485 ; 486. III. and 2. A. & S. 260. II. 
— 100. Tantum fluere = in yielding so much juice. — 101. Dis 

— secundis. Drinking did not begin till after the first course, 
when it was commenced by a libation. — 102. Transierim. Gr. 
485 ; 486. I. and 2. A. & S. 260, R. 4. Rhodia ; sc. vitis ; the 
vine of Rhodes, a noted island off the coast of Caria. Bumaste ; 
so called from its producing large grapes. The term is Greek, and 
signifies large-breasted. Racemis. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 
103. Sint. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 104. Neque enim = nor 
indeed. Numero = by a (definite) number. — 105. Velit . . . 
velit. Gr. 485. A. & S. 260. II. Aequoris = of the plain ; i. e. 
the desert. Idem. Gr. 451. 3. A. & S. 207, R. 27 (a). — 108. 
Ionii . . . fluctus = fluctus Ionii maris. — 110. Fluminibus 
salices. Cf. E. VII. 66. — 111. Steriles. See on v. 70. — 112. 
Myrtetis. Gr. 414 and 2; 317. 2. A. & S. 247 and ij 100. 7. 
Apertos suggests the idea of apricos, to which aquilonem et frigora 
is opposed. He treats soil and climate together, as in I. 51 foil. — 
113. Bacchus ; i. e: vitis. — 114. Extremis — orbem = extremas 
orbis partes cultas. The sentence is closely connected with what fol- 
lows, the sense being, Look at foreign lands, go as far as you will, 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 499 

you will find each country has its tree. Cultoribus. Gr. 388. II. 
A. & S. 225. II. — 115. Pictos = tattooed. Gelonos; a Scythian 
people, on the Borysthenes (Dnieper), in the district now called 
Ukraine. — 116. Divisae = divided among, apportioned ; i. e. each 
tree has its allotted country. Arboribus. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. 

— 117. Sabaeis. See on I. 57. — 118. Quid. Gr. 380 and 2. 
A. & S. 235, R. 11 ; 232 (3). — 119. Que = also. Ba'ccas = pods. 
Martyn understands it of the globules of gum. Acanthi ; a tree, 
probably the acacia, from which gum arabic is procured. See on E. 
IV. 20. — 120. Nemora Aethiopum ; the cotton plant. Lana. 
Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 121. Vellera. It was the 
general belief in Virgil's time, and long after, that silk, which was 
brought to Europe from the East, grew on the leaves of trees in the 
country of the Seres, a people whose abode was supposed to be be- 
tween India and Scythia. Silkworms were not known in the Roman 
empire till the time of Justinian. Depectant. Gr. 525. A. & S. 
265. Tenuia. Gr. 669. II. and 3. A. & S. 306 and (3). — 122. 
Oceano propior is explained by extremi sinus orbis. It seems to 
imply the Homeric notion of the ocean as a great stream, encircling 
the outside of the world. — 123. Extremi — orbis. India is so 
called as forming the extreme bend or curvature of the oblong habi- 
table earth at the ocean in the East. Aera summum arboris ; i. e. 
the top of the tree in the air. — 125. Et . . . quidem = et tamen. 
Tarda = inexpert. — 126. Tristes. See on I. 75. Tardum ; that 
remains long in the mouth. — 127. Felicia = blessed ; i. e. as an 
antidote. Mali ; from malum, the citron. Presentius = more 
efficacious. — 128. Infecere ; sc. veneno. — 129. Miscuerunt. 
Gr. 669. IV. A. & S. 307. 1 and (2). Non — verba = incanta- 
tions. — 130. Atra venena. Here, as in I. 129, ater seems to con- 
tain the double notion of black and deadly. The former refers to the 
color of the poison itself (cf. A. IV. 514), or to the color produced 
by it on the body. — 131. Faciem. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. and 
R. 2. —133. Erat; for esset. Gr. 511. II. 2. A. & S. 259, R. 4. 1 
and (b). Labentia. We should expect labuntur ; but the poets 
sometimes in description use participles or adjectives for finite verbs. 

— 134. Ad prima = in the highest degree. Olentia (= fetid) 
applies to animas as well as to ora. — 135. Fovent = correct, 
sweeten. Hlo ; sc. malo. Senibus. Gr. 385 and 2. A. & S. 
223, R. 2 and 1 (a). Anhelis = asthmatic. — 136. Silvae ; i. e. 
the citron-groves. Terra. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. See on vina, 
v. 97. — 137. Ganges ; i. e. India, of which the Ganges is the prin- 
cipal river. Auro turbidus ; whose mud or sand is gold. Gr. 414 
and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. Hermus; i.e. Lydia, in which the 
river Hermus rolls its golden sands. — 138. Certent. Gr. 484 



500 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

A. & S. 260. II. Bactra ; the capital of Bactria, the northern part 
of the Persian empire, put for the country. — 139. Que ; disjunctive. 
See on v. 87. Panchaia ; the happy island of Euhemerus, here put 
for Arabia, near which his fancy placed it. — 140 - 142. The allusion 
in these lines is to the story of Jason ploughing the field with the 
fire-breathing bulls of Aeetes, king of Colchis, and sowing it with 
dragon's teeth, whence warriors in armor sprung up. The idea con- 
veyed is, Italy is not inferior to Colchis in fertility, and she is, at the 
same time, free from those monsters which afflicted that country. — 
141. Satis. Gr. 580. A. & S. 274, R. 5 {a). Dentibus. Gr. 384. 
A. & S. 223. Con. prefers to take it as an abl. abs., and to regard 
the passage as a case of hysteron-proteron. — 143. Massicus ; a 
mountain in Campania, celebrated for its excellent wine. Here an 
adjective. — 144. Implevere. See on I. 49. Laeta = prolific. — 
145. Campo. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2.— 146. Cli- 
tumne ; a river of Umbria, flowing into the Tiber, whose waters 
were supposed to have a powerfully purifying effect, so that the flocks 
became white, either, according to Pliny, from drinking of it, or, ac- 
cording to Virgil, from bathing in it. Maxima ; as being the largest 
victim, or as being offered on the occasion of a triumph. — 147. Sa- 
cro. The god Clitumnus had a temple at the head of the stream. — 
148. Duxere. White bulls from this locality were sacrificed at the 
celebration of triumphs ; and as the victims were led before the tri- 
umphal car, they are here represented as heading the procession. 
See on I. 217. — 149. Alienis mensibus = in months not belong- 
ing (to it) ; i. e. in the winter months. Ver and aestas are used here 
somewhat loosely. — 150. Pomis. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 
and 1. It may be a dat. = pomis creandis. — 151. Saeva leonum 
semina ; i. e. saevi leones. — 152. Nee — legentes ; i. e. they do 
not, when collecting plants for food, by mistake gather aconite, and 
thus poison themselves. Virgil probably uses aconiia here for poison- 
ous plants in general ; for Dioscorides expressly says that aconite 
grew abundantly in Italy. Legentes is the subst. — 153. Tanto 
. . . tractu = with so vast a train ; sc. quanto in aliis terris. — 155. 
Operumque laborem = and laborious works, mighty works. — 
156. Manu implies labor, personal exertion. Praeruptis . . . 
3 axis. Such was the site of many of the ancient Italian towns. 
Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 157. Antiquos — muros ; i. e. 
the ancient towns built on the banks of streams. There seems to be 
a special reference to the usefulness of the rivers. — 158. Mare . . . 
supra . . . infra ; i. e. mare superum, or the Adriatic, and mare infe- 
rum, or the Tyrrhenian sea. Alluit ; sc. Italiam. — 159. Anne; 
pleonastic for an. Lari ; a lake in Gallia Cisalpina, now Lake Como. 
Gr. 45. 5. 2). A. & S. 52. Maxime. Larius is not so large as 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 501 

Verbanus, now Lake Maggiore. — 160. Fluctibus — rnarino = 
heaving with the waves and the roar of ocean. Marino belongs to 
both nouns. Benace. See on E. VII. 13.-^161. Portus — 
Avernis. The Avernus and the Lucrinus were two small land- 
locked pools on the Campanian coast between Misenum and Puteoli. 
M. Vipsanius Agrippa, during his consulship in B. C. 37, united 
them, faced the mound which separated the Lucrinus from the sea 
with masonry (to which daustra refers), and pierced it with a channel 
for the admission of vessels. To this double haven he gave the name 
of Julius in honor of his patron Caesar Octavianus. — 162. Indig- 
natum = expressing its indignation ; i. e. at being excluded. — 163. 
Refuso = beaten back. — 164. Fretis . . . Avernis = the channel 
of Avernus ; i. e. between the two lakes, of which Avernus was the 
more inland. — 165. Haec ; sc. Italia. Rivos ; implying abun- 
dance. Con. says, stream-like threads. Aeris metalla ; i. e. aes. 
Keightley translates metalla " mines." — 166. Ostendit . . . fluxit. 
Pliny says that the senate forbade the working of the mines in Italy ; 
and these perfects may possibly refer to this discontinuance of the 
working, though they need only mean " it has been known to dis- 
play," etc. Venis. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. FTuxit = 
has abounded in. — 167. Marsos ; a warlike and hardy race, dwell- 
ing northeast of Latium. Pubem Sabellam ; i. e. the Samnites. 

— 168. Malo = to hardship. The Ligures occupied the rocky 
and barren country along what is now the Gulf of Genoa. Vol- 
scos ; a very ancient people of Latium. — 169. All these heroes 
saved Rome in extreme peril, the Decii from the Latins, Marius 
from the Cimbri, Camillus from the Gauls, the Scipios from Car- 
thage ; and so Octavianus saves her from her enemies in the East. 
— 170. Duros bello = inured to war. Gr. 391. A. & S. 222. 3. 
— 172. Imbellem ; merely an epithet of national contempt for the 
vanquished. Romanis arcibus ; Rome itself, " that sat on her 
seven hills." — 173. Saturnia tellus. See on E. IV. 6. —174. 
Magna ; sc. parens. Tibi = in honor of thee : the emphatic word. 
Res = subject. Artis; the art of agriculture. Cf. I. 122, primus 

— agros. — 175. Sanctos . . . fontes ; alluding to the fountains 
sacred to the Muses, from which poets were said to derive their in- 
spiration. Ausus recludere ; because he was the first Roman who 
ventured to write a treatise on agriculture in verse. — 176. Ascrae- 
um . . . carmen. Hesiod of Ascra in Boeotia wrote a poem on 
agriculture entitled Works and Days. Hence Virgil styles his agri- 
cultural poem an Ascraeum carmen. 

177. Dicendum est is to be supplied. Robora = vires. Cf. I. 86. 
— 178. Natura. See on v. 49. — 179. Difficiles . . . maligni = 
churlish . . . niggardly. Both are metaphorical. Difficiles, opp. to 



502 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

facilis in v. 223. — 180. Tenuis = lean, hungry. Arvis ; sc. sunt. 
Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. — 181. Palladia. See on I. 18. — 182. In- 
dicio. Gr. 390. I. and 2. A. & S. 227, R. 2 and 3. Oleaster. The 
presence of the wild olive shows that the soil is good for the culti- 
vated. — 183. Plurimus. See on E. VII. 60. Baccis ; sc. oleastri. 
— 184. Uligine ; i. e. the natural moisture of the earth. Gr. 414 
and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 185. Quique and the following qui- 
que, in v. 188, form an apposition to v. 184. — 188. Felicem = fer- 
tilizing. Qui — austro — and that which rises to the south. Gr. 
379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. — 189. Aratris. Gr. 388. II. A. & S. 
225,11.-190. Fluentes. Cf. on v. 100. —191. Fertilis; sc. 
erit. Uvae. Gr. 399 and 2. 2). A. & S. 213. — 192. Pateris et 
auro = pateris aureis. Gr. 704. II. 2 ; 422. 2. A. & S. 323. 2 (3) ; 255, 
R-3 (^)- — 193 - Inflavit — Tyrrhenus. The custom of employing 
pipes at sacrifices was Greek as well as Roman ; but as pipers appear 
to have existed at Rome from the earliest times, it is sufficiently prob- 
able that, like actors, they were imported from Etruria. Pinguis ; 
from good-living at the altar. Ebur = ivory pipe. — 194. Pandis 
= curved, hollow. Fumantia = reeking ; i. e. from the natural 
heat of the exta. Reddimus = we offer. — 195. Tueri = to keep. 
See on tegere, I. 213. — 196. Urentes. The goat was held, either 
by its bite, or by something poisonous in its saliva, to kill crops and 
trees, especially vines and olives. Culta = plantations. — 197. 
Saturi = rich. Longinqua ; sc. arva. — 198. Amisit Mantua ; 
i.e. in the assignment of lands mentioned in E. I. and IX. — 199. 
Herboso flumine ; i. e. the Mincius. Cycnos. See on E. IX. 
29. — 200. Deerunt. Gr. 669. II. 2. A. & S. 306. 1 and R. 1 (1). — 
203. Fere = for the most part, generally speaking. It goes with 
optima frumentis. — 204. Namque — arando ; i. e. this loose, 
crumbling state of the soil is what we seek to effect by ploughing. — 
205. Aequore. See on I. 50. — 206. Juvencis might perhaps be 
taken as an abl. of the agent, construing decedere as a neuter passive ; 
but it is better to take it as an abl. of maimer or circumstance. — 207. 
Ground lately cleared is another kind of soil which is good for corn. 
Aut refers grammatically either to the sentence nigra fere, etc., or to 
non ullo ex aequore, etc., the sense being the same either way. In the 
one case we supply optima frtimentis, in the other quam ex Mo ae- 
quore unde, etc. Iratus ; i. e. at the wood cumbering the ground. 
Devexit = has carted away. Devexit . . . evertit . . . (et) eruit ; 
a hysteron-proteron. Gr. 704. IV. 2. A. & S. 323. 4 (2). — 210, 
211. Petiere . . . enituit. For the tense, see on I. 49. Cf. nitentia 
culta, I. 153. — 213. Casia; an aromatic shrub, with leaves like the 
olive. Rorem == rosemary. — 214. Tofus = tufa ; a sort of vol- 
canic sandstone. — 215. Chely dris ; a venomous snake of amphib- 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 503 

ious nature. The ancients supposed that serpents ate clay. — 215. 
Creta. See on I. 179. Negant alios = declare that no other. A 
personification. Aeque ; sc. ac ipsi (i. e. tofus et creta) ferunt. It 
goes with praebere as well as with ferre. The meaning is that the pres- 
ence of tufa and clay is a sign that snakes haunt the place. — 216. 
Curvas relates to the shape of the snake. — 217. Fumos = steam, 
vapor ; the same as nebulam. — 218. Ipsa. Gr. 452 and 1. A. & S. 
207, R. 28 {a). Ex se ipsa remittit may refer to exhalations, like the 
preceding verse, or to exudations. — 219. Viridis is to be taken 
closely with vestit, as if it had been viridem. The common reading is 
viridi. —220. Scabie; the effect of the robigo. Cf. scabra robigine, 
I. 495. Salsa ; because the same saltness which would rust iron 
would be unfavorable to produce. See w. 237 foil. — 223. Fa- 
cilem pecori = well-natured, favorable to cattle. See on difficiles, 
v. 179. Vomeris. Gr. 399 and 2. 1). A. & S. 213 and R. 1 (2). — 
224. Capua; the chief town of Campania. Vesevo ; the same as 
Vesuvius. It is properly an adjective. — 225. Vacuis = thinly peo- 
pled. Clanius ; a small river of Campania, which frequently over- 
flowed its banks and did much mischief (hence non aeqicus) to the 
territory of Acerrae, a town in the neighborhood. It is here put for 
the people of the country through which it flowed. — 226. Quam- 
que ; sc. terra7n. — 227. Supra morem = unusually. Si ; with 
requires. — 228. Altera — Lyaeo ; parenthetical. — 229. Magis 
belongs to densa, answering to rarissima quaeque. Densa . . . rara 
= close . . . loose. Quaeque. Gr. 458. 1. A. & S. 207. R. 35 (b). 

— 229. Lyaeo is here = vino. See on Ov. M. XL 67. — 230. Ante 
= first. Ante — oculis is explained by in solido, which gives the 
reason for the choice. — 232. Summas . . . arenas = the topmost 
portionof the soil. — 233. Si deerunt; i. e. if the earth does not 
fill the hole. Gr. 669. II. and 2. A. & S. 306. 1 and (1). — 234. 
Uber is a laudatory synonyme for solum. Negabunt ; sc. arenae. 
See on v. 215. — 235. Scrobibus ; here used for puteus. The plu- 
ral for the singular. Superabit = shall be in excess. — 236. 
Cunctantes = stubborn. Crassa terga = stiff ridges. — 237. 
Proscinde. See on I. 97. — 239. Frugibus. Gr. 391. A. & S. 
222. 3. Infelix = infecunda. Arando = aratione. — 240. Nee 

— servat ; i. e. the grape and the apple degenerate in such a soil. 
Nomina; name for character. Sua Gr. 449. 2. A. & S. 208 (7) 
{a). — 241. Tale . . . specimen = the following proof. Spisso 
vimine = of thickly woven osiers. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. 
Qualos appears to be the same thing as the cola, which is added 
merely for the purpose of explanation. — 242. Fumosis . . . tectis ; 
where they had been hung after the vintage was over to preserve 
them from dampness and worms. — 243. Ager. The whole ager is 



504 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

virtually the subject of the experiment. — 244. Ad plenum = to 
the full ; i. e. to the brim. — 245. Scilicet = you will see, of 
course ; denoting the consequence of the process. — 246. At = 
autem. Manifestus. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a). — 247. 
Tristia is proleptic. — 248. Denique = briefly, to be brief. It 
belongs to hoc pacto. — 249. Jactata ; i. e. worked. — 250. Len- 
tescit = sticks. Habendo = in handling. Used passively, like 
arando, v. 239. — 251. Majores ; i. e. than usual. Ipsa ; i. e. with- 
out manure or irrigation. See on E. IV. 21, 23. Justo laetior 
= too productive. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. — 252. Nimium be- 
longs to fertilis. Mini. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. — 253. Primis . . . 
aristis = in its first crop ; i. e. when first under tillage, implying 
that it will fall off. — 254. Tacitam ; i. e. tacite, without further ex- 
periment. — 255. Oculis. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. 
Praediscere ; i. e. before cultivation. — 256. Cui — cuique. Fri- 
gus ; i. e. in the soil. — 257. Piceae ; the common fir. Taxi no- 
centes. Cf. v. 1 13 and E. IX. 30. — 258. Pandunt vestigia = 
reveal traces ; i. e. of the cold. — 259. Multo. Gr. 418. A. & S. 
256, R. 16. Ante ; with quam. — 260. Excoquere = to bake ; 
i. e. by exposing it to the sun and weather. Magnos . . . montes ; 
a strong, perhaps an exaggerated expression. See on v. 37. Ccn- 
cidere = to cut up thoroughly. The lesson to be enforced is that 
of hard and thorough work. Cf. I. 65, 66, a passage which is ani- 
mated by the same enthusiasm. — 261. Ante. The repetition is 
emphatic. — 263. Solo. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. Id . . . cu- 
rant = bring this about ; i. e. ut putri solo sint. — 264. Lab ef acta 
= loosened ; proleptic. — 265. Si — fugit ; i. e. those who are 
very particular. — 266. Ante. See on v. 230. Locum similem 
is in apposition alternately, as it were, with each of the two clauses 
that follow, ubi — seges and quo feratur ; i. e. a like spot for the nur- 
sery, and a like spot for the vineyard, the two being reciprocally com- 
pared. Prima = primum, at first; opp. to mox. Paretur. Gr. 
485 ; 486. III. A. & S. 260. II. —267. Arboribus. See on v. 89. 
Seges = the vine-crop. Digesta feratur = feratur et digeratur. 
— 268. Subito ; with mutatam. Semina = the young vines. So 
in v. 302. Matrem; i. e. the earth. — 269. Quin etiam = nay 
even. Coeli regionem ; referring to the points of the compass. — 

270. Quo modo . . . qua parte = modtim quo . . . partem qua. 
These clauses and the one following are the objects of restituant. — 

271. Quae terga = the side which, as a back. Axi = the north 
pole. — 272. Adeo — est = so powerful are habits formed in tender 
age ; in teneris having the force of in teneris annis. — 275. In denso 
= in loco denso consito. In denso ubere could scarcely mean anything 
but a close or stiff soil. Non ubere = not less prolific (than when 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 505 

planted wide). Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Cf. segues terrae, v. 37 ; 
segnis carduus, I. 151. — 276. Tumulis. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 
247 and 2. Solum ; sc. metabere. Supinos = gently sloping ; so 
as to present a broad surface. — 277. Indulge ordinibus ; i. e. 
give them room, set them wide. Nee — quadret. The order of 
this passage, which has perplexed the commentators so much, is 
probably : nee secius (qicam si densa seras) omnis secto limite via arbo- 
ribus positis in unguem quadret = yet still (as much as when you plant 
close) let each avenue with drawn line, as you set your trees, exactly 
tally ; i. e. yet still so set your trees that the line of each avenue that 
you draw may exactly tally with the rest. Secto via li?nite then will = 
via secta. Cf. I. 238, via secta per ambas, where Virgil calls the ecliptic 
via, while Ovid, M. II. 130, speaking more precisely, calls it limes. 
Nothing more than regularity is prescribed in these two lines so un- 
derstood ; the simile of the legion, which follows, shows that the 
quincuncial order is intended. Via and limes are used in the same 
context again, A. II. 697, apparently without any intended contrast. 
In unguem goes with quadret. Limite. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. 
Arboribus. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. See on v. 89. — 279. Bello 
may be taken as dat. or abl. Longa is proleptic, since it is only by 
deploying that the legion becomes long. — 280. Agmen is the 
column in order of march, which deploys into acies, or line of battle. 
— 281. Acies; sc. sunt. — 282. Necdum — proelia ; i. e. while 
the regularity of their order is still undisturbed. Miscent ; sc. mil- 
ites. — 283. Dubius = in suspense. Mediis ... in armis = be- 
tween the two armies. — 284. The apodosis of the simile begins with 
this line. Supply sic. Paribus numeris . . . viarum = into ave- 
nues of equal spaces ; or, into equal and regular avenues. Gr. 414 
and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Viarum may limit omnia, in which case 
omnia viarum = omnes viae. — 287. Neque — rami ; because other- 
wise the boughs will have no space wherein to spread. 

289. Ausim Gr. 239. 4 ; 485. A. & S. 162. 9 ; 260. II. Sul- 
co = set obi. — 290. Altior. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 15 {a). 
Terrae for in terra. Arbos ; i. e. on which to train the vines. So 
arbore, v. 300. — 294. Nepotes = successive generations. — 295. 
Multa virum . . . secula, a mere variation of the preceding. Vol- 
vens = rolling, going through. Durando . . . vincit = outlasts, out- 
lives. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 296. Turn, in this and other 
passages, appears to indicate a point in a narration or description, not 
necessarily a point of time, and generally the last point, so as to be 
nearly —denique. Cf. A. I. 164, IV. 250, VI. 577. — 297. Ipsa; as 
opposed to ramos et brachia. Ipse is sometimes employed to distin- 
guish the whole from a part, or the better part from the remainder. 
— 301. Tantus — terrae ; i. e. so great that when they are far from 



5©6 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

it they are less vigorous. — 303. The wild olive was an unctuous tree, 
and would easily catch fire. Pastoribus. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. — 306. Coelo. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. and R. 2. 

— 308. Nemus; i. e. the arbustum. Ruit = throws up. — 310. 
A vertice = desuper, ab alto. — 311. Glomerat = thickens, mass- 
es. Ferens == spreading. — 312. Hoc ubi ; sc. accidit. Non — 
valent = they (i. e. vites) have no strength from the stock ; i. e. then- 
stock no more shows life. Caesaeque = nor when cut ; i. e. when 
the burnt stock kas been cut to make it grow again. Que is disjunc- 
tive. See on v. 87. — 313. Ima . . . terra = from the deep earth 
(at their roots). Similes = like (to what they were before), as be- 
fore. — 314. Infelix = infecundus. Superat = solus superest. Fo- 
liis. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. 

315. Nee — persuadeat = nee quisquam tarn prudens habeatur 
ut tibi persuadeat. Movere ; i. e. in order to make scrobes. — 317. 
Semine. See on vv. 268, 302. — 318. Concretam = frozen. 
Affigere ; sc. se, — 319. Satio ; sc. est. Rubenti ; i. e. with flow- 
ers. — 320. Candida avis ; i. e. the stork, a bird of passage, said 
to feed on serpents.— 321. Frigora. The force of the plu. may be 
expressed by saying "the cold days." Rapidus. See on I. 92. 

— 322. Hiemem ; i. e. those constellations which the sun enters in 
winter. Praeterit. Gr. 704. I. 1. A. & S. 323. 1 (b) (1). Aestas 
= the heat of summer. — 323. Adeo. See on E. IV. 11. Nemo- 
rum . . . silvis ; cultivated trees, vineyards . . . natural trees, woods ; 
though Con. thinks both mean the trees in the arbustum. — 324- 
327. The language of this passage is metaphorical and borrowed 
from physical generation. — 325. Pater Aether . . . conjugis (i. e. 
Terrae). See on E. VII. 60. Laetae = fruitful. — 327. Magnus 
. . . magno. Virgil is fond of such combinations. Cf. I. 190. — 328. 
This relates to the loves of the birds. — 329. Repetunt = renew. — 
330. Almus. See on G. I. 7. Zephyri. See on I. 44. — 331. 
Sinus is metaphorical, and substituted for glebam. Superat = 
abounds. Omnibus. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. — 332. Soles : i. e. 
the suns of each day. Novi ; because they are the beginning of the 
warm season. — 336. Crescentis = nascentis. This and the follow- 
ing lines mean that the world was born in spring. Origine. Gr. 
426. A. & S. 253. — 337. Alium , . . tenorem = a different char- 
acter. — 338. Crediderim. Gr. 485. A. & S. 260, II. and R. 4. 
Ver . . . agebat = was keeping spring-time ; like agere festum. — 
339. Parcebant flatibus ; i. e. forbore to put them forth. — 341. 
Caput — arvis. An allusion to the myth that the first men sprang 
from the earth. — 343. Res . . . tenerae are the young plants, buds, 
etc. Hunc . . . laborem = this hardship ; i. e., that plants now ex- 
perience from the extremes of heat and ecld. See on I. 150. — 344. 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 507 

Tanta quies is explained by nunc laborem. Caloremque. Gr. 663. 
III. 1. 4). A. & S. 304. 3 (4). — 345. Inter here not only follows 
its case, which is not unusual in poetry, but stands in a different line 
from it. Cf. A. III. 685. Exciperet. This verb in its most general 
sense seems to imply receiving from or after some one or something 
else. Here the milder skies receive the earth after the severer weath- 
er. — 346. Quod superest = as to what remains, for the rest ; i. e. 
to resume and pursue the subject to the end ; a Lucretian transition, 
which occurs several times in Virgil. Premes = thou shalt plant. 
Virgulta = cuttings, slips ; i. e. either of the vine or of the trees in 
the arbustum. — 347. Memor occule = memento occulere — 348. 
It would seem necessary to suppose a connecting particle here, for the 
poet surely cannot mean that the stones and shells are to be a sub- 
stitute for the manure and soil. Squalentes = rough. Rough 
shells would leave interstices for the water. — 349. Tenuis. See on 

1. 92. — 350. Halitus ; from the evaporation of the water. Ani- 
mos tollent = will take courage; i. e. will thrive. Sata; the same 
as virgulta, v. 346. Jamque = and before now. Reperti ; sc. sunt. 
— 351. Super = desteper. The stone or the potsherd would prevent 
the earth from being washed away, a necessary precaution when the 
vines are on a slope ; and it also would prevent the ground round the 
roots from being parched and made hard. Atque is disjunctive. — 
352. Urguerent. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264. 1. Hoc... hoc; a 
repetition, not a distinction. Ad = with a view to, against. — 353. 
Hiulca ; a proleptic use of the adjective. Canis ; i. e. Sirius. — 
354. Diducere = to break and loosen; lit. to separate. — 355. Ca- 
pita = radices. Duros == massive ; i. e. the work is thoroughly 
done. Bidentes. The bidens was a very heavy, two-pronged hoe, 
used more like a pickaxe than a hoe, whence jactare. The terms em- 
ployed in this passage, saepius, duros, jactare, presso, exercere, luctan- 
tes, all point to hard, thorough, unremitting work. — 357. Flectere ; 
i. e. to plough across as well as up and down the lines of vines. — 
358. Materials for training the vines. Lives ; not leves. Hastilia ; 
because resembling the handle of a spear. — 360. Viribus. Gr. 
414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. Eniti = to climb. — 361. Tabu- 
lata (= stories) were the successive branches of the elm to which 
the vines were trained, the intermediate boughs being removed. — 
362. Frondibus. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 363. 
Teneris ; sc. vitibus. Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. There are three 
periods : 1. When you must leave the young vine entirely alone ; 

2. When you may pluck off the leaves but not use the knife ; 3. When 
you may use the knife — 364. Laxis . . . habenis ; a metaphor ta- 
ken from the driving of horses. Per purum =per ae'rem. Cf. in 
vacuum, v. 287. — 365. Ipsa ; sc. vitis, as distinguished from the 



508 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

leaves. — 366. Interque legendae ; by tmesis for interlegendaeque. 

— 369. Turn denique = turn demnm. Dura — imperia = main- 
tain a stern government ; a metaphor drawn from military discipline. 
Cf. imperat arvis, I. 99. 

371. Tenendum (sc. est) = must be shut out. — 372. Laborum 
= of trials. See on I. 150. Gr. 399 and 2. 2). A. & S. 213. — 373. 
Cui. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Super = besides ; not " more than." 
The comparison comes in v. 376. Indignas = severe, cruel. Solem- 
que potentem. Cf. I. 92. — 374. Uri = buffaloes. Capreae 
sequaces = the persecuting roes. — 375. Pascuntur. Gr. 704. I. 
1. A. & S. 323. 1 (1). — 376. Concreta = congealed, stiff. —377. 
Gravis = oppressive ; with ineumbens. Scopulis ; referring to the 
vineyards on the terraced rocks. So in v. 522. — 378. Uli. Gr. 385. 
A. & S. 223, R. 2. It may be taken as nom. with^r^w. Venenum 
dentis. See on v. 196. — 379. Stirpe. Gr. no. 4. A. & S. 64. 3. 

— 380 - 396. A digression on the Dionysia, or festivals of Bacchus, 
in Greece and in Italy. — 381. Caeditur . . . ineunt. Gr. 467. III. 
A. & S. 145. I. 3. Veteres ludi = ancient plays ; i. e. the first 
rude attempts at the drama. Proscenia = the stage. — 382. In- 
geniis = for genius ; i. e. for men of genius. — 383. Thesidae j 
the Athenians : so called from their ancient king Theseus. Gr. 316 
and 2. A. & S. 100. 1 and (a) (2). Inter pocula laeti ; i. e. in their 
drunken jollity. — 384. Unctos — utres ; referring to the game of 
dancing on the inflated oiled skin of the he-goat which had been 
sacrificed. The game afforded great amusement to the spectators. 
He who succeeded was victor, and received the skin as a reward. — 
385. Ausonii ; a general name for Italians, and here employed of 
the people of Latium, but the Ausones were properly an ancient tribe, 
occupying the southern part of the Italian peninsula. — 387. Ora = 
masks. Corticibus ; sc. ex. See on I. 262. — 388. Per carmina 
laeta may be = in the course of, as they sing, glad hymns, or = by 
glad hymns. — 389. Oscilla Oscilhim, a. diminutive through os- 
ctdum from os, meaning a little face, was the term applied to faces or 
heads of Bacchus, which were suspended in the vineyards to be turned 
in every direction by the wind. Whichsoever way they looked they 
were supposed to make the vines in that quarter fruitful. From this 
noun came the verb oscillo, meaning to swing, and hence our word 
oscillate. Mollia = mild, propitious ; of the mild and propitious 
expression of the god's face, like caput honesium. Most take it = mo- 
bilia, easily swayed by the wind, waving. — 391. Complentur; sc. 
ubere. — 393. Suum . . . honorem = suas laudes ; i. e. ipsi debitas 
laudes. — 394. Patriis ; i. e. handed down from our forefathers. 
Lances ; probably for the exta, as in v. 194 — 395. Sacer = de- 
voted. — 397. Alter refers back to v. 371. — 398. Cui est = which 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 509 

is never satisfied by exhaustion ; i. e. it is endless. Gr. 387. A. & S. 
226. The participle is used substantively. Namque nearly = nempe. 

— 399. Solum scindendum probably refers to ploughing ; though 
it may be understood of the bidens. See on Hor. C. I. 1. 11. Versis 
= reversed. — 401. Fronde. Gr. 425. A. & S. 251. Nemus, 
like silvis, v. 404, and perhaps umbra, v. 410, seems to be used of the 
supporting trees in the arbushim, as in v. 308. Actus in orbem = 
moving in a circle. Acttis may, however, = past (labor), and in orbem 
be connected with redit. — 402. Atque. The copulative is sometimes 
used instead of a conjunction denoting a more special connection. 
The relation intended is usually that of time, et or atque standing in 
the place of quum ; here it is that of accordance, " even as." C£ the 
use of atque in comparisons, in simul atque, etc. — 403. Jam olim 
nearly =ja??i hem, v. 405. Olim is here connected with quum in the 
same way as with ubi, A. V. 125. — 404. Honorem; i. e. the leaves. 

— 405. Jam turn = even then. Cf. A. I. 18. —406. Curvo — 
dente. Saturn was regularly represented with a pruning-knife in his 
hand. Deris is used of any curved implement. Relictam ; i. e. 
fructu etfrondibus nudatam. Cf. w. 403, 404. — 407. Persequitur. 
Cf. insectabere, I. 155, and insequitur, I. 105. Fingit = moulds, forms. 
Cf A. VI. 80. — 408. Primus ; i. e. be the first to do it. Devecta. 
Gr. 579. A. & S. 274. 3 (b). See on v. 207. — 409. Sarmenta ; the 
prunings of the vine. Vallos ; the vine-poles. They were taken up 
and put under cover at the end of the vintage. — 410. Melito ; of 
vines, like seges, serere, semina. Bis ; i. e. in spring and autumn. The 
leaves have to be stripped from the vines twice in the year. — 411. 
Segetem; for vinea?n. Herbae; in a wide sense. — 412. Uterque 
labor ; i. e. of pruning and weeding. — 413 - 415. Rusci . . . arundo 
. . . salicti Butcher's-broom, reeds, and willows are used for tying 
up the vine. Salicti See on E. I. 55. — 416. Reponunt = re- 
poni sinunt. — 417. Effectos = completed. Extremus ; i.e. hav- 
ing come to the end of his task. — 418. Pulvisque rnovendus. 
This appears to have been a distinct process, founded on the belief 
that dust was beneficial to vines. — 419. Juppiter = the weather, 
storms. Metuendus uvis may mean either an object of terror to 
the grapes, or an object of terror (to the vine-dresser) for the 
grapes. — 420. Non ulla is an exaggeration. They do not need the 
same constant attention as the vine. — 421. Rastros. See on I. 94. 

— 422. Haeserunt arvis ; i. e. when they have been once trans- 
planted from the seminarium. Aurasque tulerunt ; i. e. when 
they are strong enough to weather the breezes. — 423. Ipsa = sua 
sponte. Satis; put for olives, as for vines, v. 350. Dente; for 
bidente, not for vomere, as some make it. — 424. Cum vomere = i. e. 
as sure as the ploughshare is put into the ground. Cum here ex- 



5IO NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

presses close connection not so much of time as of causation, a sense 
which may be illustrated by the opposite sine. — 425. Hoc = by 
this ; sc. arando ; i. e. by this and this only, this will be enough. 
The common interpretation makes hoc = on this account. Pinguem 
et placitam Paci seem to express the effect of nutritor ; i. e. nu- 
tritor utpinguis sit, etc. Nutritor. Gr. 537. A. & S. 267 (2). 

426. Poina; the fruit by metonymy for the trees. Sensere. 
The metaphor seems to be taken from an adult man feeling his limbs 
strong under him. — 427. Raptim = rapide. Cf. I. 409. — 428. 
Opis. Gr. 399 and 2. 2). A. & S. 213. Que couples the adverbial 
subst. vi with the adverbial adj. indiga. Cf. A. VI. 640, Largior — 
Purpureo. — 429. Nee minus ; i. e. equally with the trees that have 
been named. Interea ; i. e. while man is cultivating the vine, olive, 
etc. Nemus ; used generally of the trees of the forest in their un- 
cultivated state. — 430. Inculta; emphatic. Aviaria. Gr. 317. 
A. & S. 100. C. 8. —431. Tondentur cytisi. See on E. I. 79. 
Cf. also I. 15. Taedas; of the pine ; so that alta is appropriate. — 
432. A poetical amplification of taedas ministrat — 433. The mean- 
ing seems to be : when nature offers so much to the planter and cul- 
tivator, can man hesitate to plant and cultivate? — 434. Majora; 
used in contradistinction to the smaller trees which follow. Se- 
quar. Gr. 486 and II. A. & S. 260, R. 5.-435. Illae = even 
they ; emphatic. — 436. Satis ; including plantations. Pabula 
nielli ; a poetic combination of pabula apibus and materiam melli. 
Cf. E. I. 54, 55. — 437. Cytorum. Cytorus was a mountain of 
Paphlagonia, near Amastris, on the southern coast of the Euxine, 
famous for the growth of the box-tree. — 438. Naryciae = Nary- 
cian ; i. e. Locrian. Naryx, or Narycion, was a town of the Opuntian 
Locrians in Greece, and the native city of Ajax. A colony of these 
Locrians came into Italy and founded Locri, near which was a forest, 
famed for its plentiful supply of pitch. Cf. A. III. 399. Arva = 
terras. — 439. Obnoxia. See on I. 396. — 440. Caucasio ; re- 
ferring to the mountains still known by the name. — 442. Alios 
aliae. Gr. 459. 1. A. & S. 207, R. 32 (a). Lignum. Gr. 363. 
A. & S. 204. —443. Navigiis. Gr. 391 and 1. A. & S. 222, R. 1. 
Cupressosque. Gr. 663. III. 1. 4). A. & S. 304. 3 (4). — 444. 
Hinc refers to silvae generally. Trivere = tornavere. See on I. 
49. Tympana ; wheels, either of solid wood or boards, shaped like 
a drum. — 446. Viminibus ; for tying up the vines and for wicker- 
work. Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 250. 2 (1). Frondibus; for food for 
cattle. — 447. The construction is : myrtus et bona bello cornus validis 
hastilibus ; sc. fecundae. Hastilibus ; not the actual spear-shafts, 
but the shoots as they grow on the tree. Cf. A. III. 23. — 448. 
Ituraeos. Ituraea was a region of Palestine east of the Jordan. In 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 511 

Virgil's time it was inhabited by Arabs famous for their skill in 
archery. — 449. Nee . . . non = nee non. Torno rasile ; one 
epithet, like bo7ia bello. — 451. Undam ; sc. Padi. Gr. 371. 3. 
A. & S. 232 (2). — 452. Missa Pado = sped down the Po. Gr. 
414. A. & S. 248. Cf. IV. 373.-453. The reference is to bee- 
hives made of bark and of hollow trees. Alveo. Gr. 669. II. 
A. & S. 306. 1. — 455. Et = even. Ille furentes, &c. As an 
illustration of the preceding statement he cites the battle of the Cen- 
taurs and Lapithae at the marriage of Pirithous and Hippodamia, 
caused by the excess in wine of the former. — 456. Centauros ; 
a race inhabiting Mount Pelion, in Thessaly, represented as half men 
and half horses. Leto. Gr. 414. A. & S. 247. Rhoetum, Pho- 
lum, Hylaeum ; individual Centauri. — 457. Lapithis. The La- 
pithae were a savage race inhabiting the mountains of Thessaly : 
Pirithous was their king. Cratere keeps up the notion of a Baccha- 
nalian fray. —458. Norint. Gr. 234. 2. A. & S. 162. 7 (a). —459. 
Agricolas. Gr. 381. A. & S. 238. 2. Ipsa. See on E. IV. 21, 
23. Fundit Gr. 519 and 2. A. & S. 259. — 460. Humo = from 
her soil. Justissima ; not because she repays labor, but because 
she gives man all he needs. — 461. Foribus. Gr. 428. A. & S. 
211, R. 6. — 462. Mane salutantum; alluding to the morning 
levees which were customarily held by the rich. Cf. Sail. Cat. 
XXVIII. and Cic. in Cat. I. 4 10. Aedibus. Gr. 422 and 2. 
A. & S. 255, R. 3 (a) and {b). — 463. Varios = variegated. In- 
hiant = (men) gaze at ; or it may refer to the owner and = gloat 
over. Pulchra testudine = with beautiful tortoise-shell. Con- 
nect with varios. — 464. Illusas — fancifully wrought. Vestes 
. = couch-covers. Ephyreia aera; vessels made of Corinthian 
brass, which were of great value. Ephyra was the ancient name of 
Corinth. — 465. Assyrio is here used loosely for Phoenician or 
Tyrian. — 466. Casia is here not the Italian shrub of v. 213, but the 
bark of an eastern aromatic tree. Liquidi = puri. Usus olivi 
= the oil in respect to its use, the service of the oil. — 467. At 
= yet. Fallere. Gr. 552. 3. A. & S. 270, R. 1. — 468. Latis ; 
opp. to the confinement of the city. Fundis. Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 
254, R. 3. — 469. Vivi — natural, fresh ; opp. to artificial reser- 
voirs, of which there were many at Rome. At is merely a repetition. 
Tempe ; the famous vale in Thessaly, through which the river Pe- 
neus flowed, here put for valleys in general. — 471. Lustra fera- 
rum; i. e. hunting. — 473. Sancti patres ; i. e. old age is revered. 
— 474. Justitia. See on E. IV. 6. — 475 - 489. While my first 
wish is that the Muses would reveal to me the whole system of 
nature's laws, my second, should that be denied, is to lead a country 
life : my heart leaps up at the thought already. 



512 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

475. Ante omnia may be taken either with primum or with dul- 
cesy but the former best brings out the sense of the whole passage, 
which is : Above all things I would be the poet of philosophy ; if I 
cannot be that, I would be the poet of the country. — 476. Sacra 
fero means either to carry the sacred symbols in procession, or to 
sacrifice as a priest. The latter is, perhaps, preferable here. — 477. 
Accipiant ; i. e. may they receive my dedication of myself and assist 
me with their favors. Gr. 487. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Vias et si- 
dera may be taken as a hendiadys for vias siderum. — 478. Defec- 
tum and labores both refer to eclipses. Cf. A. I. 740 ; errantem lu~ 
nam solisque labores. — 479. Terris. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Tu- 
mescant. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. The commentators take this of the 
tides ; but it seems to denote something more violent and irregular, 
such as the sudden rise of the sea in an earthquake. — 481. Oceano 
. . . tinguere. The ancients believed that the sun, when he set, de- 
scended into the ocean. Soles hiberni . . . tardis noctibus ; i. e. 
why the days are so short and the nights so long in winter. — 483. 
Possim. Gr. 492; 499. 1 and 2. A. & S. 262 and R. 11. — 484. 
Frigidus . . . sanguis. It was the opinion of some of the ancient 
philosophers that the blood about the heart was the seat of thought, 
and as that was warm or cold the mental powers were vigorous or 
obtuse. — 486. O, ubi campi = (9 essem ubi sunt campi =0 (that 
I were) where (are) the plains ! Ubi and qui (v. 488) are relatives, not 
interrogatives. Campi Spercheusque may be taken as a hendiadys 
for Campi Sperchei. Cf. fagus stivaque, G. I. 173. — 487. Sper- 
cheus; a river of Thessaly. Bacchata = revelled on. Gr. 221. 2. 
A. & S. 162. 17 (a). Lacaenis = Laconian, Spartan. — 488. Tay- 
geta (neu. plu., common Latin form Taygetus) ; a ridge of mountains t 
in Laconia, terminating in the promontory Taenarum. O, qui = 
utinam sit, qui. Haemi. See on I. 492. — 489. Sistat. Gr. 501. I. 
A. & S. 264. 6. — 491. Fatum ; i. e. death, regarded as the fiat of 
nature. Acherontis ; a river of the lower world, here put for the 
lower world itself. Gr. 705. III. A. & S. 324. 3.-494. Pana. 
See on E. IV. 58. Silvanum. See on I. 20. Nymphas. See 
on E. V. 75. — 495. Populi fasces; i. e. the consulate at Rome. 
— 496. Flexit = movit. Fratres is generally taken to refer to one 
of the domestic contests for Eastern thrones, such as that in the fam- 
ily of the Arsacidae between Phraates and Tiridates. See Hor. C. I. 
26, Introd. — 497. Conjurato . . . Histro = the conspiring Danube. 
Conjurato is applied to the Danube, by a change very common with 
the poets, to signify that other nations on the Danube joined the Da- 
cians. Descendens ; alluding to their position on the mountains. 
Dacus. See on Hor. C. I. 35. 9. — 498. Res Romanae = the 
Roman state. — 499. Habenti = diviti. — 502. Tabularia = ar- 



THE GEORGICS. BOOK II. 513 

chives. — 503 - 512. The pursuits of ambition and avarice. — 503. 
Freta = maria. Caeca = ignota. — 504. Penetrant — regum. 
Cf. Hor. Ep. II. 78. — 505. Exscidiis. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 
247 and 3. Penates = homes. — 506. Gemma ; i. e. e gemma. 
Sarrano = Tyrian ; from Sarra, a name of Tyre. — 508. Hie; the 
aspirant to eloquence, who is struck dumb with admiration of the 
successful speaker, and the applause which greets him. Rostris. 
Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. Hunc; the aspirant (kiante7n) 
to political greatness, who is caught and carried away (corripuit) by 
the applause in the theatre (per cuneos) which rewarded popular 
statesmen. — 509. Enim = quidem. — 510. Gaudent ; sc. alii. — 
511. Exsilio ; i. e. the place of exile. Cf. A. III. 4. — 513. Dimo- 
vit. See on I. 49. — 514. Labor ; sc. est or venit. Parvosque 
Penates = little homestead. The common reading is nepotes. — 
516. Quin . . . exuberet annus = to the year's abounding. Gr. 
498. A. & S. 262, R. 10 and N. 6. 2. — 519. Sicyonia bacca ; 
i. e. the olive, for which Sicyon, a city near Corinth, was famous. — 
520. Glande. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. Laeti = sat- 
isfied. — 521. Ponit = drops, yields. — 522. See on v. 377. — 524. 
Domus =familia; here the wife. — 525. Laeto = luxuriant. — 
527. Ipse ; sc. agricola. Agitat = celebrates. — 528. Ignis ; i. e. 
on the altar. Cratera. Gr. 93. 1. A. & S. 80. Coronant ; i. e. 
with a wreath of flowers. Cf. A. III. 525. The flagon containing the 
wine for a libation was encircled with a garland. — 529. Lenaee. 
See on v. 4. — 530. Certamina ponit = institutes contests. In 
ulmo. The mark was set up in or scored on an elm. — 531. Nu- 
dant ; sc. pecoris magistri. — 532. Sabini ; one of the most ancient 
and powerful of the indigenous peoples of Central Italy, and one of 
the few who preserved their race unmixed. — 533. Remus ; the twin 
brother of Romulus, the reputed founder of Rome. Etruria ; the 
country of the Etrusci or Tusci, in Central Italy, called by the Greeks 
Tyrrhenia. — 534. Scilicet. See on I. 282. — 535. Una = alone ; 
i. e. though a single city. Arces = montes, colles. — 536. Dictaei 
regis ; i. e. Jupiter, who was said to have been born on Mount Dicte 
in the island of Crete. — 538. Aureus . . . Saturnus. See on Ov. 
M. I. 113. — 539. Etiam connects necdum with ante, as the former 
etiam connects ante with what precedes. — 541. Spatiis = in its 
courses, circuits ; i. e. in its extent. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. See 
on I. 513. Aequor. Comp. on v. 105 and I. 50. 



33 



514 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 



THE AENEID. Book I. 

The subject of the Aeneid, as propounded in the opening lines, is 
the settlement of Aeneas in Italy, after years of wandering, and a 
short but sharp final struggle. It is, however, only of the events pre- 
ceding the settlement that the poet really treats, — of the wanderings 
and the war. Accordingly, the poem divides itself into two parts, 
the wanderings being embraced by the first, the Italian war by the 
second. But the two parts naturally involve different modes of treat- 
ment, comprehending as they do periods of time widely differing in 
length, the one seven years, the other apparently a few days. Here 
the poet follows the example of Homer in the Odyssey. The long 
period of wanderings is taken at a point not far from its conclusion ; 
enough is told in detail to serve as a specimen of the whole, and the 
hero is made to narrate the rest of his past adventures to the person 
whose relation to him is all the time forming one adventure more. 
This peculiarity of the Homeric story is noticed by Horace (A. P. 
164 foil.) and recommended to epic writers generally. 

The First Book of the Aeneid performs well the objects which it 
was no doubt intended to accomplish, — those of interesting us in the 
hero and introducing the story. After a brief statement of the sub- 
ject, we have a view of the supernatural machinery by which it is to 
be worked out ; and this, though imitated from Homer, is skilfully 
contrived so as to throw a light on the subsequent history of the Ro- 
man descendants of Aeneas, by the mention, even at that early time, 
of their great enemy, Carthage. Like Ulysses, Aeneas is shipwrecked 
in the voyage which was to have been his last, the main difference 
being that the Grecian hero is solitary, having long since lost all his 
companions, while the Trojan is still accompanied by those who fol- 
lowed his fortunes from Troy. The machinery by which the storm is 
allayed is perhaps managed more adroitly by Virgil than by Homer, 
as there seems to be more propriety in representing the inferior god 
of the winds as counteracted by the superior god of the sea, than in 
making a sea-nymph rescue one whom the god of the sea is seeking 
to destroy. The remaining incidents of the Book are mostly bor- 
rowed from Homer ; but we may admire the skill with which Virgil 
has introduced varieties of detail, and the art with which a new im- 
pression is produced by a combination of old materials, in making 
the friendly power that receives Aeneas unite the blandishments of 
Calypso with the hospitalities of Alcinous, and so engrafting a tale 
of passion on a narrative of ordinary adventure. 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 515 



ARGUMENT. 

After stating the subject of the poem generally (1 - 7), addressing 
the Muse (8- 11), and accounting for the resentment of Juno to the 
Trojan race (12-33), the poet introduces his hero, Aeneas, the son 
of Anchises and Venus, in the seventh year of his wanderings after 
the destruction of Troy, when he had just started from Sicily, and 
was making for the Italian mainland : a tempest is sent forth against 
him by Aeolus, at the instigation of Juno, which sinks one of the 
ships and drives the rest in a shattered condition on the coast of 
Africa (34-123). Neptune interferes to calm the storm (124- 156). 
Aeneas lands with seven out of twenty ships, slays seven stags of im- 
mense size, gives one carcass to each of the ships, and exhorts his 
companions to patience and hope (157-207). The banquet of the 
ships' crews is described (208-222). Venus pleads the cause of her 
son Aeneas and of the Trojans before Jupiter, and lays all the blame 
of their misfortunes on Juno (223-253). The king of the gods, 
moved by the appeal, discloses the decrees of the Fates, and consoles 
his daughter by the assurance of future prosperity and unbounded 
empire to the Trojans in their descendants, the Roman people (254 
- 296). Mercury is sent down to render Dido, queen of Carthage. 
friendly to Aeneas (297 - 304). Satisfied with the declaration of Jupi- 
ter, Venus descends to earth, and in the guise of a huntress presents 
herself to Aeneas, and announces that the ships which he had sup- 
posed lost were safe in port (305-409.) Aeneas proceeds to Car- 
thage, accompanied by Achates, both rendered invisible by the care 
of Venus (410-420). Carthage is described in progress of building 
(421 - 436). Aeneas visits the temple of Juno, and sees depicted there 
the Trojan wars (437-493)- Dido visits the temple (494-508). A 
deputation from the twelve missing ships of the Trojans waits on Dido 
to complain of the outrages of her people and bewail the loss of Ae- 
neas (509 - 560). Dido consoles them, and offers them a settlement 
(561 - 578). Aeneas, freed from the cloud, appears, and addresses 
Dido, who replies kindly, and prepares to entertain him and his fol- 
lowers (579 - 642). Aeneas sends for Ascanius (643 - 656). Venus 
substitutes Cupid for Ascanius (657-698). The banquet is given in 
Dido's palace (699 - 747). Dido asks Aeneas to narrate the downfall 
of Troy and his own wanderings (748 - 756). 

1. This line is preceded in some MSS. by the following verses : 

I lie ego, qui quondam gracili modulatus avena 
Carmen et egressus silvis vicina coegi 
Ut quamvis avido par event arva colono, 
Gratum opus agricolis ; at nunc horrentia Martis. 



516 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

The genuineness of these verses is doubtful. By Burmann, Peerl- 
kamp, Heyne, and many other commentators they are condemned as 
unworthy of the genius of Virgil, and inconsistent with the dignity of 
epic poetry, and are assigned to some unknown grammarian ; but Wr., 
Forb., Henry, and others, regard them as genuine, and by no means 
devoid of terseness and elegance. Wr. does not, however, suppose 
them to have formed originally the beginning of the Aeneid, but to 
have been prefixed, as an inscription, to a few copies of the first book, 
which the poet circulated among private friends, as a sample of the 
whole. They appear to have existed in the time of Servius and Do- 
natus, who say that Nisus the grammarian had heard a story of their 
having been expunged by Tucca and Varius, to whom, after Virgil's 
death, the revision of the Aeneid, preparatory to publication, was in- 
trusted. See Life. 

They may be translated thus : I (am) that (poet), who formerly 
tuned a lay on a slender reed-pipe (E. I. 2), and, having gone forth 
from the woods (i. e. having abandoned pastoral poetry), taught (i. e. 
in the Georgics) the neighboring fields to obey the husbandman, how- 
ever eager (for harvests), — a work acceptable to cultivators of the 
soil ; but now (I sing) the horrid (arms) of Mars. Horrentia ; sc. 
arma and cano from the first line of the poem. 

Anna = arms, war. The words arma virumque are not a hendi- 
adys, as some have taught, but give first the character of the subject 
and then the subject itself. Trojae; the chief city of Troas, a dis- 
trict in the northwest corner of Mysia, in Asia Minor. It was called 
Troja, from Tros, one of its early kings ; also Ilium, Ilios, or /lion, 
from Ilus, the son of Tros ; Dardania, from Dardanus, the grand- 
father of Tros ; and Teucria, from Teucer, its first king ; whence 
also the Trojans are often called Teucri. It was situated on a rising 
ground, above the plain of the rivers Scamander and Simois. On a 
hill to the east of it rose its acropolis, called Pergamum or Pergama. 
The city was protected by strong and lofty walls, said to have been 
built by Apollo and Poseidon. Primus. The earlier commentators 
have found a difficulty in reconciling primus with Antenor's previous 
migration (below, vv. 242 foil.), and suggest that Aeneas had first 
reached Italy proper, though Antenor had previously reached Ve- 
netia. On the other hand, Heyne and Wr. make primus equivalent 
to olim, thus weakening a word which from its position and its occur- 
rence in the first line of the poem must be emphatic. The more ob- 
vious sense is that Aeneas is so called without reference to Antenor, 
as the founder of the great Trojan empire in Italy. — 2. Italiam. 
Gr. 379. 4. A. & S. 237, R. 5 (c). Fato is a mixture of modal and 
instrumental abl., as in IV. 696 ; VI. 449, 466, etc. ; and belongs no 
less to venit than to profugus, the two words forming one idea, that 






THE AENEID. BOOK I. 517 

of coming as a fugitive. Profugus. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204- Lavina 
= Lavinia, which is the reading of many editions ; an adj. from 
Lavinium, a town about three miles from the sea, on the Via Appia, 
said to have been founded by Aeneas, and named in honor of his 
wife Lavinia, the daughter of Latinus. Que = even. The phrase 
Lavi7iaque litora is epexegetical (i. e. explanatory- and restrictive) of 
Italiam. Cf. Satumiaque arva, v. 569. — 3. Die is virtually pleo- 
nastic. Cf. v. 457, VI. 593. Grammatically it is in apposition with 
qui ; rhetorically it appears to be here = quidem. Jactatus is na- 
turally transferred from wanderings by sea to wanderings by land. 
In such passages as vv. 332, 668, we see the point of transition. — 
4. Vi superum expresses the general agency, like fato profugus, 
though Juno was his only personal enemy. Superum. Gr. 45. 5. 
4). A. & S. 53. Memorem = ever-mindful, relentless. Ob iram. 
Cf. unius ob iram, v. 251. — 5. Quoque and et are pleonastic, 
though the former is to be joined with multa, and the latter with bello. 
Et = etiam. Passus ; constructed as a participle, like jactatus. 
Dum conderet = while he was endeavoring to found, in the strug- 
gle to found. Gr. 522. II. A. & S. 263. 4 (1). The clause belongs 
to multa bello passus, rather than to jactatus. Urbem ; i. e. Lavinium. 
— 6. Deos = Penates, household gods. Latio. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 
225. IV. R 2. Unde may be taken either as qua ex re, or as a quo 
(sc. Aenea), as in V. 568 ; VI. 766. The latter seems more probable, 
the passage multum — Latio being only subsidiary or parenthetic 
Genus Latinum, Albani patres, altae moenia Romae, denote the three 
ascending stages of the empire which sprang from Aeneas : Lavinium, 
Alba, and Rome. — 7. Albani patres ; not our Alban ancestors, 
but the senate, or rather the noble houses of Alba, of which the Julii 
were one. Altae. See on G. I. 485. — 8 -11. Why was it, Muse, 
that Juno so persecuted so pious a hero ? — 8. Memora. See on 
E. VII. 19. Quo numine laeso = quomodo laeso ejus numine, how 
in consequence of an offence against her majesty ? For this use of 
the pronoun quo, see on E. I. 54. Numine. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. Laeso. Gr. 580. A. & S. 274, R. 5 {a). The whole 
passage quo — irnpiderit is epexegetical of caussas. In vv. 19-28 
Juno's resentment is referred to two causes : the destined triumph of 
Rome over Carthage, and the insults to which she had been exposed 
from the Trojan race. We may conceive, therefore, that quo numine 
laeso points to the former of these, and quid dolens to the latter. — 9. 
Quid. Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 232 (2). Deum. See on superum, v. 4. 
Volvere. See on volvens, G. II. 295. The misfortunes are regarded 
as a destined circle which Aeneas goes through. The infin. with im* 
pello is poetical for ut with subj. Cf. II. 55, 520. — 10. Insignen? 
pietate. Cf. VI. 403. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. Pick* 



518 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

includes the performance of all duties to gods, parents, kinsmen, 
friends, and country. — 11. Animis. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Irae; 
poetic plural for the singular, often used to give variety or vivacity to 
the expression, or because the singular does not suit the measure. 
— 12. Antiqua; with reference to Virgil's own age. Fuit. Gr. 

471. 1. A. & S. 259 (2) (a). Cf. II. 325. Tyrii coloni = 

settlers from Tyre. For the parenthetical construction, comp. v. 530. 
Quam may be supplied. — 13. Contra = over against, opposite. 
Gr. 602. II. A. & S. 279. 10 {a) and (/). Longe may be connected 
with contra ; i. e. far opposite, or made an adverbial adjunct of ostia 
= longe distantia, far away. The latter is a Grecism, but may per- 
haps be supported by the use of super, III. 489. — 14. Opum in- 
cludes all sources of power. Cf. II. 22. Gr. 89. 4 ; 399. A. & S. 
83. II. 3, Ex. ; 213. Studiis — belli = and very eager in the pur- 
suits of war, much given to the stern pursuits of war. Gr. 429. A. & 
S. 250. 1. — 15. Terris. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. Magis . . . unam 
— far more ; lit alone more ; i. e. alone in respect to the degree in 
which Juno cherished it. Unus is often used to strengthen the superl., 
as justissimus unus, II. 426, but seldom as here the compar. — 16. 
Coluisse ; i. e, as dweller in the temple. Cf. v. 447. The gods were 
supposed to dwell particularly in those places which they took under 
their especial protection : hence coluisse=to have cherished. Samo ; 
an island in the Aegaean sea, separated from the coast of Ionia by a 
narrow strait, scarcely a mile in width, where Juno had a temple of 
great beauty. Observe the non-elision of the 0. Gr. 669. I. and 2. 
A. & S. 305. 1 and (2). Anna. Cf. II. 614. — 17. Hoc. Gr. 445. 
4. A. & S. 206 (8). Regnum . . . gentibus = the capital of the 
nations ; i. e. instead of Rome. Gentibus. Gr. 390 and 2. A. & S. 
227 and R. 4. 18. Qua (sc. ratione) = in any way. Cf. VI. 882. 
Fata sinant. Cf. IV. 651 ; XI. 701. Jam turn ; i. e. in that early 
age, long before it became the actual rival of Rome. See on G. II. 
405. Tenditque fovetque = both strives and fondly cherishes the 
purpose. Tendit determines the construction, the infin. being the 
object of both verbs. Tendo is often followed by an infin., the subject 
being the same as the nominative to the verb, as in II. 220 and Hor. 
E. I. 10. 20. Foveo, on the other hand, takes an accusative. These 
two constructions are here united, the sentence hoc — esse standing in 
the relation of an ordinary infin. to tendit, and of an accusative to 
fovet. — 19. Sed enim = however, nevertheless. This expression, 
like the Greek dXka yap, is elliptical, something like the following, to 
which the enim refers, being necessary to complete the sense ; sed 
(timebat, ut hoc efficere posset,) audierat enim. Cf. II. 164 ; V. 395 ; 
VI. 28. Duci. The pres. infin. denotes the event as existing in the 
designs of fate. Gr. 541 and 1. A. & S. 268. 2 and R. 1 (a). —20. 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 519 

Tyrias . . . arces ; i. e. Carthaginem a Tyriis conditam. Quae 
verteret = to overturn. Gr. 500. A. & S. 264. 5. — 21. Hinc ; 
i. e. ex hoc Trojano sanguine. Late. Gr. 583 and 1 ; 704. III. and i< 
A. & S. 277, R. 1 ; 323. 3 and (1). Bello. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. Superbum = praestantem. — 22. Exscidio Libyae. 
Gr. 390. A. & S. 227. Libyae; i. e. Carthagini : the whole for a 
part, as Asiae for Trojae, III. 1. Volvere. The Parcae (see on E. 
IV. 47) are here said volvere, i. e. volvere vices = to make events roll 
on, or after each other, in the same manner as Jupiter is said to do, 
III. 376. — 23. Veteris and prima are applied to the Trojan war, 
as contrasted with this new antipathy of Juno to the Trojans, caused 
by her anxiety for Carthage, as the former had been caused by her 
love for Argos. Saturnia ; Juno as the daughter of Saturnus. 
24. Prima; adverbially. See on G. I. 12. Some make it =prius, 
olim ; others, = foremost, chief. Argis ; the capital of Argolis, in the 
eastern part of the Peloponnesus, where Juno was worshipped with 
special honor. — 25. The words from necdum to honores are paren- 
thetical. These caussae irarum are distinguished from the veins hel- 
ium, in other words from the irae themselves, the bitterness displayed 
in or produced by the war. Virgil had already, v. 24, suggested one 
cause in her love for Argos ; but though this supplies a parallel to 
her present feeling, it scarcely accounts for its existence ; so he goes 
back to show that her old quarrel with Troy had other grounds. 
Etiam ; with necdum. Dolores is the pang, put for the affront. It 
is only in the sense of the affront that it can properly be joined with 
exciderant animo (= had been forgotten). — 26. Alta mente = alte 
in mente. Repostum. Gr. 703. 2. A. & S. 322. 4. — 27. Judicium 
Paridis ; which awarded the palm of beauty to Venus, in opposition 
to Juno and Minerva. Spretae — formae = the wrong which con- 
sisted in despising her beauty ; i. e. the unjust depreciation of her 
beauty. The phrase is explanatory of judicium, like Lavinaque litora, 
v. 2. — 28. Genus invisum = the hated stock ; referring to the 
birth of Dardanus, who was the son of Jupiter by Electra. Gany- 
medis ; a son of Laomedon, or of Tros, according to some, who, on 
account of his youthful beauty, was forcibly carried off (rapti) by 
Jupiter's eagle from Mount Ida to heaven, and there made Jupiter's 
cup-bearer in place of Hebe, the daughter of Juno. Cf. V. 253 foil, 
and Hor. C. IV. 4. 4. — 29. The construction is resumed after the 
parenthesis with some variation, his accensa super referring to the sub- 
ject-matter of the parenthesis. Super = insuper. Cf. II. 71. 
Jactatos . . . arcebat = jactabat et arcebat, or jactando arcebat. — 30. 
Troas. Gr. 98. A. & S. 85, Ex. 2. Reliquias Danaum = who 
had been left by the Greeks. The Greeks are called Danai from 
Danaus, one of their mythical ancestors. Achilli Gr. 69, Ex 5. 



520 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

A. & S. 73, R. — 31. Arcebat Gr. 468. A. & S. 145. II. Mul- 
tos . . . annos ; i. e. seven. — 32. Acti fatis ; inasmuch as their 
destiny forbids them to rest. Cf. fato profugus, v. 2. The meaning 
is not that the Trojans were harassed, driven hither and thither, by the 
Fates, but simply that they were impelled onward, or toward Latium, 
by the Fates ; while at the same time they were driven backward, or 
from Latium, by Juno. The result was multos — circum. 33. Molis. 
Gr. 401. A. & S. 2ii, R. 8 (3). Condere. Gr. 549. A. & S. 269. 

— 34. Virgil plunges at once in medias res. See Introduction to this 
Book. The departure from Sicily, which occurred in the seventh 
year of Aeneas's wanderings, closes his narrative, III. 715. In altum 
= for the deep. — 35. Dab ant ; sc. ventis. Laeti belongs to both 
verbs, but in construction is to be taken with dabant. Salis ; for 
maris. Cf. v. 173 ; III. 385 ; V. 848, 866; VI. 697. — Aere; i. e. aetata 
navi. See on Hor. C. I. 1. 39. Ruebant = were driving (before 
them). See on G. I. 105. — 36. Sub pectore = deep in her breast. 

— 37. Haec secum (sc. loquitur) = thus soliloquizes. Me . . . de- 
sistere. Gr. 553. III. 1. 2 and 3. A. & S. 270, R. 2 (a). Victam 
= baffled. — 38. Teucrorum. See on Trojae, v. 1. Avertere = 
to turn back : not merely to turn away. Regem ; Aeneas. — 39. 
Quippe always gives a reason, sometimes with irony, and here with 
indignation. Pallas; the Greek name of Minerva. See on G. I. 18. 
Most of the critics make ne = nonne, implying an affirmative an- 
swer ; but Con. says : The use" of ne, which implies a negative 
answer, expresses incredulity that Pallas should have done what Juno 
cannot. — 40. Argivum ; for Graecorum, as often. Ipsos ; i. e. 
Argivos, the crews, as distinguished from the ships. — 41. Unius is 
emphatic = of one only, Pallas being friendly to the rest of the Greeks ; 
whereas Juno hated the whole Trojan race. Nozam ; referring to 
the violent dragging of Cassandra from the temple of Minerva, where 
she had taken refuge after the capture of Troy. Cf. II. 403 foil. ; VI. 
840. Et — Oilei is epexegetical of Unius ab noxam. Furias ex- 
presses the infatuation which impels to crime. Ajacis ; Ajax, king of 
the Locrians, called Oilei, son of Oileus, to distinguish him from Ajax, 
king of Salamis, son of Telamon. He went to the Trojan war with 
forty ships, and on his return voyage, when near the Capharean rocks 
on the coast of Euboea, the calamity which is here described is said to 
have occurred. Oilei. Gr. 397. 1 (1). A. & S. 211, R. 7 (1). — 44. 
Flammas ; i. e. of the thunderbolt that had pierced his breast. — 45. 
Turbine = with the whirling wind, or whirling force, of the thunder- 
bolt. Scopulo — acuto = and impaled (him) upon a sharp-pointed 
rock. This is the usual interpretation. But Henry maintains, that in- 
figere never means to fix on, but always to fix in or to fix with, i. e. pierce 
with, that scopulo is an abl., and that the sense is, pierced with a sharp- 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 52 1 

pointed rock ; i. e. hurled at him. The construction infigere aliquem 
alicui, to impale a person upon a thing, is at least unusual, if not un- 
exampled. — 46. Regina. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210 and [a). — 47. 
Soror. Jupiter and Juno were children of Saturnus. Annos. Gr. 
378. A. & S. 236. — 48. Bella; a continuous struggle, in contrast 
with the single blow of Pallas. Gero. Gr. 467. 2. A. & S. 145. 1. 2. 
Quisquam. Gr. 457. A. & S. 207, R. 31 {a). Qiiisquam suggests a 
negative answer ; and the indie, presents, coupled as they are by et 
with bella gero, express wonder and astonishment that under the cir- 
cumstances homage is actually paid to her : I am proving my imbe- 
cility, and yet I have worshippers ! — 49. Praeterea then will ex- 
press, not so much sequence in time as a logical relation, = after this. 

— 51. Loca. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. Austris. Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 
250. 2 (1). — 52. Aeoliam; one of the Lipari islands, which were 
north of Sicily ; probably Lipara. Gr. 379. 4. A. & S. 237, R 5 (c). 

— 52. Aeolus. See on Ov. M. I. 262. — 54. Preinit = rules, 
coerces. — 55. Indignantes = impatient. Murmure. Gr. 414 
and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Montis ; with mun?iure. Cf. v. 245. 

— 56. Claustra = fastenings, barriers. Arce = in his citadel; 
neither the summit of the mountain containing the prison of the 
winds, nor an elevated throne in the prison, but, according to the 
most common use of the word, stronghold, castle, citadel, i. e. in the 
immediate vicinity of the mountain and prison ; the natural dwelling 
of a despotic governor. — 57. Sceptra tenens ; i. e. invested with 
regal power, not necessarily holding a literal sceptre, though that may 
be the meaning. For the plural see on irae, v. 1 1. Animos = their 
unruly spirits. — 58. Ni faciat . . . ferant . . . verrant. Cf. II. 
599 ; VI. 293. Gr. 504 and 1. A. & S. 261. 2 and R. 3. Maria — 
profundum. Cf. E. IV. 51. — 59. Quippe = for. In prose it 
would precede ni faciat, and should be translated as if it stood in 
that position. — 60. Speluncis. Gr. 422. A. & S. 254, R. 3. Ab- 
didit = put (them) away ; i. e. apart, by themselves ; not hid, con- 
cealed. — 61. Molem et montes ; hendiadys for molem montium. 
Gr. 704. II. 2. A. & S. 323. 2 (3). Insuper = above ; not, besides. 

— 62. Foedere = lege. — 63. Premere . . . habenas = to tighten • 
the reins. Cf. A. XL 600, pressis Aabenis. The object of premere 
may be ventos understood. Laxas , . . dare = to slacken (them). 
Jussus = when ordered ; i. e. a Jove. Join with pre77iere as well as 
with dare. — 66. Mulcere . . . tollere. Gr. 371. 5. A. & S. 229, R. 5. 
Vento ; with mulcere as well as with tollere. — 67. Tyrrhenum . . 
aequor, that part of the Mediterranean sea, situated between Italy 
and the islands of Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica. Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 
232 (2). — 68. Ilium. See on Trojae, v. 1. Gr. 705, II. A. & S. 
324. 2. Victos ; because they had not been able to protect Troy. 



52 2 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

— 69. Incute vim ventis = throw fury into the winds. Henry, 
following Servius, prefers to consider ventis the instrum. abl. ; attack 
them (i. e. the Trojans) with the winds. Submersas obrue = sub- 
merge et obrue. Gr. 579. A. & S. 274. 3 [b). — 70. Diversos = in 
different directions ; the crews. — 71. Corpore. Gr. 428. A. & S. 
211, R. 6. — 72. Quarum. Gr. 396. III. 2 and 3) (2). A. & S. 212, 
R. 2. Quae forma pulcherrima ; a circumlocution for pulcherri- 
mam. Forma. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Deiopea; in the case 
of quae by attraction, instead of the regular ace, which is found in 
some MSS., but is considered an inferior reading. Gr. 445. 9 : 665. 
A. & S. 206 (6) (b) ; 301, N. — 73. Connubio. Gr. 669. II. and 3. 
A. & S. 306. 1 and (3). Propriamque dicabo = and will make 
her thine forever. See on E. VII. 31. Juno speaks not only as the 
mistress of the nymph, but as the goddess of marriage. It is in the 
same character that she offers to dispose of the hand of Dido, IV. 
126, where this line is repeated. — 75. Pulchra . . . prole. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. But some prefer to take it with faciat as an abl. 
of means, and others, as an abl. abs. — 76. He throws the respon- 
sibility on her : thine is the task to examine well what thou askest. 
Optes. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 77. Labor. So Juno, IV. 115. 
Fas est is exculpatory ; I am doing my duty in executing thy com- 
mands. — 78. Tu. Observe the very strong emphasis indicated by 
the expression and repetition of the pronoun. Regni ; with hoc. Gr. 
396. III. A. & S. 212, R. 2. Sceptra. See on v. 57. Jovem; 
i. e. Jupiter's favor, or patronage. — 79. Concilias . . . das . . . 
facis ; in the present to express the tenure on which he continues to 
hold his station. Epulis. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Accumbere. 
See on mulcere, v. 66. — 80. Nimborum. Gr. 399 and 2. 2) (3). 
A. & S. 213 and R. 1 (3). 81. Cavum — latus = he pushed the 
hollow mountain on the side with his spear turned towards it ; thus 
opening the claustra, which are to be conceived of as folding-doors 
opening inwards. Cf. VII. 620 : Turn regina deum coelo delapsa mo- 
rantes Impulit ipsa manu portas. Conversa ; not inverted, but sim- 
ply turned towards the mountain. Cf. in me — conversos, Cicero in 
Cat. IV. 1. In latus ; not sidewise, nor over on its side, nor into its 
side, making a breach, but on or against its side. Of all the com- 
mentators, Henry alone, whose interpretation Con. adopts, and which 
we have here given, seems to have fully comprehended the sense of 
this passage. — 82. Velut — facto = as if a troop were formed, as 
it were with one accord. — 84. Incubuere = they have fallen for- 
cibly upon. For the perf. see on fugere, G. I. 330. So intonuere, 
v. 90. Mari. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Totum ; sc. mare. — 85 
Una; emphatic and repeating the idea expressed in agmine facto. 
Ruunt = upheave. See on G. I. 105. Procellis. Gr. 419. III. 



THE AENEID. BOOK I.. 523 

A. & S. 250. 2 (1). — 90. Poli = the heavens; i. e. it thunders from 
pole to pole. — 92. Aeneae. Gr. 384; 398. 5. A. & S. 223; 211, 
R. 5 (1). Solvuntur = are unnerved, rendered powerless. Frigore 
=by chilling fear. — 93. Duplices=<277z<fa.r. — 95. Quis. Gr. 187. I. 
A. &. S. 136, R. 2. Ante ora patrum probably means, dying with 
the friends for whom they are fighting to cheer them on. — 96. 
Oppetere = to meet death (sc. mortem). — 97. Tydide = son of 
Tydeus ; i. e. Diomedes, king of Argos. In the army of the Greeks 
before Troy, he was, next to Achilles, the bravest among the heroes, and 
engaged in single combat with Hector, Aeneas, and other distinguished 
Trojans. Gr. 316 and 2. A. & S. 100. 1 and (a) (2). Mene . . . nou 
potuisse = that I could not. Gr. 553. III. 1. 2 and 3. A. & S. 
270, R. 2 {a). Occumbere ; sc. morti. — 98. Tua . . . dextra. 
Aeneas would have been killed by Diomedes, if Venus had not res- 
cued him. — 99. Saevus =fortis. Aeacidae. See on E. IV. 36. 
Hector ; the eldest son of Priam and Hecuba, the husband of An- 
dromache, and the chief hero of the Trojans in their war with the 
Greeks. — 100. Sarpedon ; son of Jupiter and Laodameia, a Lycian 
prince, and in the Trojan war an ally of the Trojans. He distin- 
guished himself by his valor, and was slain by Patroclus. Simois ; 
a river of Troas, rising in Mt. Ida, and, united with the Scamander, 
flowing through the plains of Troy into the Hellespont. Correpta 
. . . volvit = corripit et volvit. Sub undis. • Join with correpta. — 
101. Virum. Gr. 45. 5. 4). A. & S. 53. — 102. Jactanti = to 
him ejaculating ; a variety of the ethical dat, to be taken with ferit. 
Gr. 389. A. & S. 228, N. Stridens Aquilone = howling with 
the north wind. — 103. Adversa = full in front. — 104. Turn 
prora avertit; a consequence of the franguntur remi. Avertit ; 
intrans. like avertens, v. 402. — 105. Cumulo = in a mass, with its 
mass. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Cf. II. 498. Praerup- 
tus = precipitous. — 106. Hi ; referring to different ships, not to 
men in different parts of the same. — 107. Furit . . . areuis = raves 
with the sands ; i. e. pulls them violently about with it. Cf. III. 557. 
Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 108. Tres ; sc. naves. No- 
tus; put for the -wind in general. So Eurus, v. no, and Auster, 
v. 536. Abreptas . . torquet = abripit et torquet. Latentia ; i. e. 
in a storm ; for in a calm they are visible : dorsum immune mari 
summo. Cf. v. 125. — 109. Saxa. These are generally supposed 
to be the Aegimuri insulae at the mouth of the bay of Carthage, about 
thirty miles from the city. They were called Arue because Cartha- 
ginian priests used to offer sacrifices there to avert shipwrecks on the 
rocks. The order is suxu quue mediis in fluctibtis (exstantia) Itali 
vocant Arus. — 110. Dorsum = reef. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. 
Mari. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 111. Brevia et Syrtes 



524 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

— brevia Syrtium. See on v. 61. These were probably the well 
known Syrtis Major and Syrtis Minor, on the coast of Africa, south- 
east of Carthage, IV. 41 ; though most of the commentators (for 
what reasons they do not see fit to tell us) refer them to other shoals. 
Miserabile. Gr. 438. 3. A. & S. 205, R. 8. Visu. Gr. 570 and 1. 
A. & S. 276. III. — 113. Oronten ; a name invented by Virgil. Cf. 
VI. 334. Gr. 93. 3. A. & S. 80. IV. — 114. Ipsius ; i. e. Aeneas. 
A vertice. See on G. II. 310. Pontus =fltictus ; as we speak of 
"shipping a heavy sea." — 115. In puppim ; like in latus, v. 81. 
Gr. 85. III. 3. A. & S. 79. 3. Excutitur = is knocked off. Magis- 
ter = gubernaior. Compare VI. 353 with 337. — 117. Agens = 
forcing, impelling. — 118. Rari nantes ; with reference to vasto. 
— 119. Tabulae = planks, boards ; i. e. of such fragile parts as the 
benches of the rowers, pilot-house, aplustre, etc. ; for we must not sup- 
pose the vessel to have gone to pieces. Per undas = all over the 
water : emphatic, and in direct contrast with rari in gurgite vasto. — 
120. The names of Ilioneus and Abas are from Homer, but the per- 
sons are different, both being killed in Horn. Achatae ; Aeneas's 
most faithful friend and companion. — 121. Aletes ; a fictitious 
name, like Orontes and many others found in the Aeneid. — 122. 
Vicit. The ship of Orontes alone was wholly lost. Hiems = tem- 
pestas. Cf. v. 125. Compagibus. Gr.431. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). 
123. Imbrem = aquam. Rimis. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 
and 2. — 124. Magno — murmure. Cf. IV. 160. Misceri . . . 
emissam. Notice the change of tense from incomplete to completed 
action. — 125. Imis . . . vadis, the same as a sedibus imis, v. 84. Gr. 
422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 {b). — 126. Stagna refusa = the waters 
had been poured back, worked up ; i. e. from the bottom. Graviter 
commotus = much disturbed ; a state of feeling not inconsistent 
with the placidum caput of the next verse. Alto prospiciens= look- 
ing out over the sea ; i. e. in order to discover the cause of the dis- 
turbance in his realm. Alto, is not the point from which the view is 
taken, nor the object viewed, but the field of view, the tract of space 
over which Neptune looked. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. 
127. Summa. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. Placidum; as 
becoming the dignity of the sea-god, and as contributing to the res- 
toration of order and tranquillity. — 129. Coelique ruina = by the 
downfall of the sky. See on G. I. 324. — 130. Fratrem ; Neptune. 
Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 223, R. 2 (1) {a). — 131. Eurum . . . Zephyrum ; 
here used to represent all the winds. Dehinc. Gr. 669. II. A. & S. 
306. 1 and (2). — 132. Generis . . . fiducia vestri = confidence in 
your race ; i. e. in your semi-divine origin, as the sons of the Titan 
Astraeus and Aurora. — 133. Jam = has it come to this, that. 
Coelum terramque . . . miscere, a proverbial expression for uni- 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 525 

versal confusion. See another form of it, V. 790, 791. Numine = 
nutu, nod, assent. — 134. Moles (sc. aquarum) ; i. e. fiuctus. — 
135. Quos ego. Gr. 704. I. 3. A. & S. 324. 33. — 136. Post = 
another time. Non ; with simili. — 138. Saevum = stern ; be- 
cause the badge of stern authority. — 139. Sorte. See on Ov. M. 
V. 368. Tenet ille; i. e. his province is. Immania — domos; re- 
ferring not exclusively to the cave of the winds, but generally to the 
wild, rocky Aeolia, where the winds had their home, where the cave 
of the winds was. — 140. Vestras; referring to the whole company, 
though only one is named. Ilia ... in aula. Ilia plainly refers 
aula to immania saxa and vestras domos ; therefore the aula (or court), 
in which Aeolus is here told to display his power (se jactet), is neither 
the celsa arx of v. 56, nor " the cavern of the winds," but simply the 
country of Aeolia. — 141. Clauso — carcere. Gr. 431. A. & S. 
257. Clauso is emphatic. Let him close the prison of the winds, and 
then let him reign absolute. This is Henry's interpretation, and just 
the opposite of the common one, viz. let him reign absolute in the 
closed prison of the winds ; but it is preferred for three reasons : 1st, 
the command thus interpreted is compatible with the dignity of Nep- 
tune ; 2d, imperatively required by the circumstances of the case ; 
3d, in perfect harmony with the delegated authority of Aeolus, who 
might be as despotic as he pleased among the immania saxa of Aeo- 
lia, provided only he did not open or shut the prison of the winds 
without orders : cf. /usst(s, v. 63. — 142. Dicto citius ; i. e. before 
he had done his speech. Gr. 417. 6. A. & S. 256, R. 9. — 144. 
Cymothoe; a Nereid. See on E. V. 75. Triton. See on Ov. M. 
I. 333. Adnixus. Gr. 439. A. & S. 205, R. 2, Ex. — 145. Naves. 
See v. 108. Scopulo. Gr. 421. I. A. & S. 242. Levat ; i. e. so 
that they may float off the rock. — 146. Vastas aperit ; i. e. so that 
the ships (v. no) may get out. These words are explained by v. 112, 
aggere cingit arenae. The ships are surrounded by the sandbank on 
all sides. — 147. Rotis . . . levibus; i. e. celeri curru. Cf. V. 819. 
— 148-156. This simile is remarkable as an illustration of Nature 
from man, the reverse of which is the general rule in Virg. as in Ho- 
mer. The image was no doubt suggested by the riots in the Roman 
forum during the political contests of the later republic. It is an in- 
stance of a simile where the construction of the sentence is fully 
drawn out. Ac couples the whole with what has gone before. The 
apodosis to veluti is sic (v. 154) ; that to quum would seem to be turn 
(v. 151), as it is there that the point of the simile is introduced. — 148. 
Magno in populo = in a concourse of people. Quum saepe = 
quum, ut saepe fit. — 149. Animis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 150. 
Faces, to fire buildings with, were regular arms of a Roman mob. — 
151. Pietate; general discharge of duty. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 



526 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

247 and 1. Meritis ; services to the state. — 152. Adstant. Here 
and in II. 303, ad expresses attention. — 154. Cecidit . . . flectit. 
For the tenses see on E. I. 31. Postquam= as soon as. — 155. 
Genitor, like pater, when thus applied, is simply a title of honor. 
See on G. II. 4. Aperto; i.e. cleared of clouds. — 156. Curru. 
Gr. 384 and II. A. & S. 223. Secundo = easy-gliding ; from sequi, 
to follow. — 157. Aeneadae. Gr. 316 and 3. A. & S. 100. 1 and 
(3). Quae — litora. See on quae semper, E. I. 54, and quae forma 
pulcherrima, v. 72. The relative supplies the want of an article. 
Cursu == rapide. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 158. Libyae. 
See on v. 22. — 159. Probably an imaginary description, though some 
have endeavored to identify the spot. In secessu longo = in a 
deep recess. Cf. III. 229. — 160. Objectu laterum = objectis la- 
teribus, by the shelter (lit. opposition) of its sides. — 161. Inque — 
reductos = and parts into the deep hollows of the shore. Cf. G. IV. 
42b. — 162. Hinc . . . nine ; i. e. on the mainland, two promontories 
of which form the headlands of the harbor. Vastae rupes may be 
taken as the line of cliffs, and scopuli as the peaks at its extremities. 
Gemini implies likeness. Cf. III. 535. Minantur = tower. — 

164. Tuta seems to include the two notions, protected from the 
wind and safe for ships. Silvis scena coruscis = a background 
of waving woods. Scena was the wall which closed the stage behind ; 
here it is that which closes the view. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 

165. Horrenti = rough, shaggy. Umbra. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. — 166. Fronte sub adversa; i. e. at the head of the 
cove, under the front of the cliffs facing the entrance of the har- 
bor. Scopulis. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. So saxo in next 
verse. — 167. Dulces ; of fresh water. G. II. 243. Vivo ; not 
hewn, but natural, and as it were growing. See on G. II. 469. — 
169. Unco . . . morsu ; with alligat, as dente tenaci in the parallel 
passage, VI. 3, with fundabat. — 170. Septem ; i. e. three from the 
reef, three from the sandbank, and his own. — 171. Amore = desid- 
erio. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 172. Arena. Gr. 419. 1. 
A. & S. 245. I. Cf. tellure potiti, III. 278. — 173. Sale. See on 
v. 35.— 174. Silici. Gr. 386. 2. A. & S. 224, R. 2.— 175. Suc- 
cepit = caught and kept alive. Foliis. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 
247 and 3. — 176. Nutrimenta ; the same as foliis ; i. e. additional 
nutriment placed around it to increase it sufficiently for the applica- 
tion of the kindling-wood (fomite). Rapuit = quickly kindled. The 
whole passage describes minutely the different steps in the process of 
making a fire by means of a flint. — 177. Cererem ; for frumentum. 
Cerealia arma ; i. e. the hand-mill and the kneading-trough. See 
on G. I. 160. — 178. Rerum = with misfortunes. Gr. 399. 3. 4). 
A. & S. 213, R. 2. Receptas = saved; i. e. from the sea. — 179. 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 527 

Torrere. See on G. I. 267. Saxo ; probably the mola, or hand- 
mill. — 181. Pelago. Gr. 392 and 1. A. & S. 222, R. 8. See on 
alto, v. 126. Anthea. 46. 3 and 5). A. & S. 80. III. Si quem 
= sicubi. See on quo mimine laeso, v. 8, and E. I. 54. Si= in the 
hope that. — 182. Phrygias = Trojanas, Troy being included in 
Phry gia Minor. Biremes ; for ships in general. It is an anachron- 
ism to speak of biremes, or, as in v. 119, of triremes, in the Homeric 
age, as they were not invented till about B. C. 700. — 183. Capyn. 
Gr. 93. 4. A. & S. 80. II. Arma; to be taken in its strict sense. 
— 185. Errantes. See on E. I. 9. Armenta, though strictly used 
of oxen, is applied, III. 540, to horses, and by Pliny, 7. 2, to apes. — 
189. Ferentes implies conscious dignity, as in v. 503. — 190. 
Cornibus ; with alta. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. Ar- 
boreis. Cf. E. VII. 30. The antlers denote the age and size of the 
stags. — 191. Miscet ; i. e. breaks up the array (aginen). Telis ; 
with agens, as in IV. 71. — 192. Victor continues the imagery of a 
battle. — 193. Fundat . . . aequet. Gr. 523. II. and 1. A. & S. 
263. 3. Humi Gr. 424. 2. A. & S. 221, R. 3, — 194. Hinc = 
then, thereupon. — 195. Deinde. The order is deinde dividit vina 
quae, &c. Cadis onerarat = had stowed in casks ; instead of the 
usual construction, onerarat cados vinis. Gr. 704. III. and 2. A. & S. 
323. 4 and (3). Cf. III. 465 ; VIII. 180, onerantque canistris Dona. 
Cadis. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. Acestes was a king of 
Sicily, who assisted Priam in the Trojan war, and who afterwards 
kindly entertained Aeneas when he landed upon the coast of Sicily. 
He was the son of a Trojan woman. — 196. Trinacrio. See on Ov. M. 
V. 347. Heros. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. — 198. Ante malorum = 
praeteritorum malorum. Gr. 583 and 2. A. & S. 205, R. II (b). 
Gossrau and Con. prefer to join ante with sumus, making it correspond 
to the idiom irakai eo-pev — 199. O passi graviora. Cf. Hor. C. I. 
7. 30. — 200. Rabiem . . . sonantes ; referring to the dogs with 
which Scylla is encircled in Virg. Cf. III. 432. Scylla and Charybdis 
are the names of two rocks between Italy and Sicily, and only a short 
distance from one another. In the midst of one of these rocks which 
was nearest to Italy, there dwelt, according to Homer, Scylla, a 
daughter of Crataeis, a fearful monster, barking like a dog, with twelve 
feet, and six long necks and mouths, each of which contained three 
rows of sharp teeth. The opposite rock, which was much lower, 
contained an immense fig-tree, under which there dwelt Charybdis, 
who thrice every day swallowed down the waters of the sea, and 
thrice threw them up again. Both were formidable to the ships which 
had to pass between them. Virgil, in his representation of them, 
differs from Homer in a few particulars. Penitus ; i. e. through 
their caverns. — 201. Accestis. Gr. 234. 3. A. & S. 162. 7 (/). 



528 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

Cyclopia saxa. See on G. I. 471. They did not actually enter 
the cave of the Cyclops, but landed on the shore, and so may be said 
to have known it. So they did not actually pass Scylla, but they 
came near enough to be in danger. — 204. Discrimina rerum = 
res periculosas. — 206. Ostendunt = praediciini, promittunt. Pas. 
Esse fas dicuntur ea, quae fatis volentibus et oracitlorum tnonitu fiunt. 
— 207. Durate = hold out. Cf. G. II. 295. — 208. Curis. Gr. 
414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 209. Vultu. Gr. 414 and 4. 
A. & S. 247 and 3. Premit = holds concealed. Cf. IV. 332, where 
it has more force. — 210. Se . . . accingunt ; alluding to the custom 
of wearing long flowing garments, which it was necessary to gird up 
close, when there was work to be done ; hence se accingere comes to 
signify to prepare for work. — 212. Secant; sc. viscera. Gr. 461 
and 1. A. & S. 209, R. 11. Veribus; pierce with, not stick on, 
spits. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. Trementia (i. e. still 
quivering) shows their eagerness. — 213. Aena ; probably for bath- 
ing before the meal, according to the custom of the ancients. 214. 
Fusi = stretched. — 215. Implentur = they fill themselves ; like 
the Greek middle voice. See on II. 383. Bacclii. Gr. 410. 7. 2). 
A. & S. 220. 3. See on E. V. 69. Ferinae; sc. carnis. Gr. 441. 3. 
A. & S. 205, R. 7 (1). — 216. Mensae remotae is not appropriate 
to this occasion, but is the general phrase for concluding a Roman 
meal. — 217. Requirunt = they utter their regret for. — 218. Seu 
. . . sive, a poetic form for utrui?i . . . an. Credant. Gr. 525. A. 
& S. 265. — 219. Extrema pati. It is not necessary to limit the 
meaning of extrema actually to the crisis of death, as in that case 
passos esse would be required here. The expression rather implies 
death as a continuing state, = to be lost, to be dead. Nee vocatos 
= and no longer hear (when) called. Wch. distinguishes between 
the condamatio which took place at the moment of death and the 
inclamatio which took place after the burial, and of which we have 
instances in III. 68, VI. 231, 506; and he thinks that the first is 
referred to here, on the ground that the Manes were supposed to hear 
the inclamatio. Henry may be right in going further, and supposing 
the words to mean that the condamatio, which, as he observes, was 
originally a means of ascertaining whether a person was really dead, 
actually takes place. — 220. Cf. VI. 176. Oronti. Gr. 69, Ex. 
A. & S. 73, R. — 221. Secum; so as not to sadden and dispirit his 
companions. See v. 209. Cf. V. 50. — 223. Et jam = and now at 
last. Cf. jamque, III. 135. Finis ; i. e. of the longus sermo. Ae- 
there. Gr. 421. I. A. & S. 242. — 224. Jacentes = lying out- 
stretched (beneath his gaze) ; as glebas jacentes (G. I. 65) is the soil 
lying outstretched to the sun. — 225. Sic ; i. e. sic despiciens — 226. 
Regnis. Gr. 386. 2. A. & S. 224, R. 1.— 227. Tales; i. e. such as Libya 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 529 

and the Trojans suggested. —228. Tristior. Gr. 444. 1. A. & S. 256, 
R. 9 {a). Oculos. Gr. 380 and 1. A. & S. 234. II. — 230. Terres. The 

object of this verb is res hominumque deumque, taken in a loose sense 
for the universe. — 231. Quid = what offence. — 233. Ob Italiam: 
i. e. to prevent their reaching Italy. — 234, Hinc ; i. e. ab his Tro- 
janis. Hinc . . . hinc ; better taken as two clauses ; though it may 
be a mere repetition. — 235. Revocato = revived ; i. e. after the 
national extinction of Troy. Teucri. See on Trojae, v. 1. — 236. 
Omni dicione = with complete sovereignty. Tenerent. Gr. 501 
and I. A. & S. 264. 1 [a) and (b). —237. Pollicitus. The earlier 
construction was pollicitus (es), with a full stop after pollicitus ; but 
most of the later commentators, following Heyne, suppose an anaco- 
luthon (i. e. a departure, in the close of a sentence, from the syntax 
with which it commenced, arising from the excitement and haste of 
the speaker) ; as if quam sententiam vertisti should have followed, or 
as if pollicitus should have been polhcitum, in agreement with te. For 
this figure of syntax see Gr. 704. III. 4. A. & S. 323. 3 (5). Trans- 
late as if it was pollicitum. Quae is for cur, or quomodo (see on quo 
numine laeso, v. 8) ; as appears from v. 260, neque me sententia vertit. 
Te sententia vertit is poetical for tu sententicmi vertisti ; the opinion 
being supposed to change the mind as external persuasion might. 

— 238. Hoc ; sc. promisso. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. — 
239. Solabar. This verb is applied first to the mind, then to the 
grief of the mind, and lastly, as here, to the cause of the grief. Fatis 

— rependens = compensating destiny (i. e of the destruction of 
Troy) with opposite destiny (i. e. of reaching Italy) : lit. compensat- 
ing opposite destiny with destiny. Contrana expresses the opposi- 
tion between destiny and destiny. Strictly then the epithet would 
agree with fatis, as the latter of the two correlatives, but, by a poeti- 
cal variety, it is joined with fata, the former. Fatis. Gr. 416. A. &S. 
252. — 242. Antenor ; a Trojan prince, who is said to have led a 
colony of Trojans and of Heneti from Paphlagoma to the head of the 
Adriatic sea, and there to have effected a settlement. — 243. Illyri- 
cos sinus , the indentations in the coast of Illyricum, an extensive 
country lying along the eastern shore of the Adriatic. Penetrare = 
to make (his) way through, past. Intima . . . regna Liburnorum ; 
not the interior of the Liburnian territory, which Antenor coming by 
sea would not penetrate, but the kingdom lying far inward in the 
Adriatic : i. e. far up, near the head of the Adriatic. See on Hor. C. I. 
37. 30. — 244. Fontem . . . Timavi = the source of the Timavus ; in 
Venetia, at the northern extremity of the Adriatic. Between this 
(fontem) and the sea (a distance of about a mile) there are subter- 
ranean communications through which the salt water forces its way, 
breaking out at the fountain through seven (Virgil says nine) mouths 

34 



530 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

or holes in the limestone rock* and overflowing the channel of the 
river. Superare = to pass beyond. It implies difficulty. — 245. 
Vasto — montis refers to the sound of the water re-echoing through 
the limestone rock. — 246. Mare ; subject of it. Proruptum = 
bursting up. — 247. Tamen ; i. e. in spite of all these dangers. 
Patavi ; supposed to be the modern Padua. Gr. 45. 5. 1) ; 396. V. 
A. & S. 52 ; 204, R. 6. — 248. Arma fixit ; i. e. hung up his arms 
and those of his comrades in token that their sufferings by flood and 
field were over. — 249. Nunc — quiescit. Wr., Forb., and Jahn 
understand these words of the death of Antenor ; but the sense re- 
quired is rather that of a tranquil settlement following on labors. 
Such expressions as componere pacem (VII. 339 ; XII. 822), or foedus 
(X. 15), componere bellum foedere (XII. 109), and urbem tuta componere 
terra (III. 387), prove abundantly that the words compostus pace may 
well have been used of the repose of a peaceful life. The antithesis 
between fixit and nunc quiescit merely implies that, after having 
founded his city, named his nation, and hung up his arms forever, he 
entered on a prosperous reign. Compostus. Gr. 703. 2. A. & S. 
322. 4. — 250. Nos. She rhetorically identifies herself with her son. 
Coeli . . . arcem ; i. e. divine honors. — 251. Infandum. See on 
G. I. 479. Gr. 381. A. & S. 238. 2. Unius ob iram recalls v. 4. 

— 252. Prodimur = we are forsaken; i.e. by Jupiter. — 253. 
Honos = reward, as in v. 249, 308. Nos — reponis ; i. e. restore us 
in Italy to the empire we have lost in Troy. For sceptra see on v. 57. 

— 254-296. Jupiter reassures her, telling her what the course of 
the destined Trojan empire is to be, beginning with Lavinium, passing 
into Alba, and ending in Rome, whose greatness is to be perfected in 
the golden age of Augustus. — 254. Olli. Gr. 186. 3. 1), A. & S. 
134, R. 1. — 255. Tempestates = the weather. — 256. Dehinc. 
See on v. 131. — 257. Metu. 116. 4. 3) ; 385. A. & S. 89. 3 ; 223, 
R. 2. Cytherea; an epithet of Venus, who was so called from 
Cythera (now Cerigo), an island in the Aegean sea, celebrated for her 
worship, or, according to some traditions, because it was in the neigh- 
borhood of this island that she first rose from the foam of the sea. 
Tuorum. Gr. 441 and 1. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (1). — 258. Tibi = to 
your comfort be it said. Gr. 389. A. & S. 228, N. {a). Urbem — 
moenia; hendiadys. Lavini. Gr. 45. 5. 1). A. & S. 52. Observe 
the change of quantity in the first syllable from Lavina, v. 2, a larger 
license being allowed for metrical convenience in proper names than 
in other words. — 259. Sublimem = on high, aloft. Ad sidera ; 
referring to the promise of deification in v. 250. — 260. Sententia 
vertit. See on v. 237. — 261. Tibi; the same as in v. 258. Re- 
mordet. The re here expresses frequent repetition. — 262. Vol- 
vens is probably a metaphor from a book unrolled. Jupiter says 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 53 1 

that he will open yet further the secrets that lie in the book of fate. 
— 264. Mores conveyed to a Roman many of the notions which 
political institutions and a social system convey to us. Viris = 
for (his) people. — 265. Viderit. Gr. 522. I. A. & S. 145. VI. ; 
263. 4 (1). Tertia aestas . . . ternaque hiberna, triginta magnos orbes 
(v. 269), ter centum annos (v. 272), imperium sine fine (v. 279) ; 
i. e. Aeneas is to reign three years after his victory over Turnus and 
the Rutulians, Ascanius thirty, the Alban kings three hundred, but to 
the empire of Rome no limit is fixed. — 266. Terna. Gr. 174. 2. 3). 
A. & S. 120. 4 {a). Rutulis . . . subactis = post Rutulos subactos : 
probably a dat., by a Greek construction, depending upon transierint ; 
though it may very well be the abl. absol. — 267. At marks the 
transition from hie, v. 261, to Ascanius. Ascanius ; the son of Ae- 
neas and Creiisa. Iulo. Gr. 387. 1. A. & S. 204, R. 8 {a). The 
son of Aeneas was first called Euryleon ; in the flight from Troy he 
received the name of Ascanius ; but he was never called lulus ex- 
cept by the Roman poets in compliment to the Caesars, who belonged 
to the gens Julia, and who traced their origin to Ascanius. — 268. 
Dam — regno = while the Trojan state stood with power un- 
broken. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Cf. II. 88. — 269. 
Volvendis = volventibus. Cf. volventibus annis, v. 234, volvenda 
dies, IX. 7. A. & S. 274, R. 9. Mensibus. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, 
R. 6. Orbes. Cf. annuus orbis, v. 46. — 270. Imperio. Gr. 419. 2. 
A. & S. 249. I. — 271. Longam. It was called Longa, from its 
stretching in a long line down the Mons Albanus towards the lake 
(Lacus Albanus). Multa vi muniet = shall build and fortify with 
great power and might. — 272. Jam = at this point in the series of 
events ; contrasting Alba and its long-lived dynasty with the preced- 
ing members of the series. The force of hie jam may be given by 
the phrase and here. — 273. Hectorea = Trojana ; Hector being 
the bravest of the Trojans. Regina. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. Sacer- 
dos ; i. e. of Vesta. — 274. Geminam . . . prolem ; i. e. Romulus 
and Remus. Partu dabit = pariet. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 
and 2. Hia = of Trojan descent ; an epithet applied by the poets 
to Rea Silvia, the daughter of Numitor, king of Alba. See also on 
Hor. C. I. 2. 17. — 275. Tegmine. Gr. 414 and 2. A. &. S. 247 
and 1. The allusion is to the myth that the infants Romulus and 
Remus were nourished by a she-wolf. It seems better with Forb. to 
understand the text of his habitually wearing a wolf's skin, in grateful 
and joyous remembrance of the fostering care of that animal. — 276. 
Excipiet gentem. See on G. II. 345. The notion here is that of 
succession. Mavortia = of Mars. This word may point at once 
to Romulus as the son of Mars or Mavors, the worship of Mars at 
Rome, and the martial character of the nation. — 278. Metas refers 



532 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

to the bounds of the empire (rerum), tempora to its duration. — 279. 
Quill = nay, even. — 280. Metu rather expresses the alarm which 
Juno feels at the course of destiny (id metuens, v. 23) than the terror 
which she spreads through the universe. The latter view, however, 
is the one taken by most of the commentators. Gr. 414 and 2. 
A. & S. 247 and 1. Fatigat ; i. e. keeps earth, air, and sea astir, by 
constantly traversing them and exciting their powers. — 281. In me- 
lius referet = shall change for the better, amend. — 282. Rerum 
= of the world. Togatam. The toga was the peculiar distinction 
of the Romans, who were thence called togati or gens togata. It was 
forbidden alike to exiles and to foreigners. — 283. Sic placitum. 
Jupiter is speaking of destiny. Lustris ; strictly a period of five 
years, here used for time or ages in general. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. 

— 284. Assaraci. Assaracus is the ancestor through whom Aeneas 
was related to the royal house of Troy, being the son of Tros and 
grandfather of Anchises. Cf. VI. 838. Phthia, a city of Thessaly 
and the native place of Achilles, Mycenae, a city of Argolis, and 
of which Agamemnon was king, and Argos (v. 24, note), which 
was ruled by Diomedes, are here put comprehensively for the whole 
of Greece, which Jupiter assures Venus shall become subject to Ro- 
man sway. — 285. Argis. Gr. 131. 3; 421. II. A. & S. 92. 4; 
254. — 286. Origine. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. Caesar; i. e. 
Augustus, not Julius Caesar, the dictator, who could hardly be said 
to be laden with the spoils of the East, v. 289. — 287. Qui termi- 
net ; i. e. destined to bound. Gr. 500 and 1. A. & S. 264. 5. — 
288. Julius. He was adopted by Julius Caesar, who was his uncle 
by blood, and therefore by the law of adoption received the gentile 
name Julius, which connected him with lulus. — 289. Coelo. Cf. 
Hor. C. III. 3. 11, 12. Gr. 422. A. & S. 254, R. 3. Spoliis — 
onustum. Cf. G. II. 171 ; IV. 560 ; A. VI. 792 foil. ; Hor. C. I. 
12, 55, etc. — 290. Secura = free from anxiety, alarm. Vocabi- 
tur . . . votis. Cf. E. I. 44 ; G. I. 42. Hie quoque ; i. e. as well 
as Aeneas, v. 259. — 291. Aspera bellis ; i. e. the iron age will 
under the reign of Augustus pass into the golden. Cf. E. IV. 8 ; A. 
VI. 793. — 292. C&na. = prisca, antiqua ; i. e. virtue stern as was 
that of the ancients. Cf. Hor. Car. Sec. 57. Fides — Quirinus. 
These four deities are chosen as typical of the primitive and golden 
age of Rome. Vesta has been mentioned before in a similar connec- 
tion, G. I. 498, Romulus and Remus, G. II. 533. Quirinus. See 
on Romule, G. I. 498. — 293. Dirae — artis = grim with closely- 
welded plates of iron. See on v. 61. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. 

— 294. Belli ; a personification, meaning the divinity who presides 
over war. The allusion is to the closing of the temple of Janus, B. C. 
29, and the existence of peace over the whole Roman world. This 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 533 

temple, which was always kept open in time of war, but closed during 
peace, is said to have been shut but four times prior to the Christian 
era. Cf. Hor. C. IV. 15. 9. Impius; on account of the civil wars. 
See on G. I. 511. — 296. No6is = catenis. — 297. Maia genitum; 
i. e. Hermes or Mercurius, the son of Jupiter and Maia, the daughter 
of Atlas. He was the messenger of the gods. Gr. 425 and 3. 1). 
A. & S. 246. Demittit . . . pateant . . . arceret. Demittit being an 
historical present, the verbs dependent upon it might be either in the 
pres. or imperf. Here we have both ; a construction which is occasion- 
ally used. See Caes. B. G. I. 8, communit . . . conarentur . . . possit. 
Ut pateant expresses Jupiter's charge to Mercury, ne arceret, his ob- 
ject in giving it — 298, Novae ; with Karthaginis. See v. 366. — 

299. Hospitio Teucris = as a place of refuge to the Trojans. Gr. 
390. A. & S. 227. Fati ; i. e. the destiny that they were to settle 
in Italy. Dido; called also Elissa, the daughter of Belus, king of 
Tyre (or, according to another account, of Sidon), and the wife of 
Sychaeus, whom her brother Pygmalion murdered for his riches. — 

300. Aera. Gr. 93. 1. A. & S. 80, R. Magnum = expanded. — 

301. Remigio = by the rowing movement, oarage. Adstitit. See on 
fitgere, G. I. 330 — 303. Volente deo = since the god (wills it) : re- 
ferring probably to Mercury. Quietum = peaceful. — 304. Accipit. 
Dido passively and unconsciously receives the influence of the god, 
and is thereby prepared to treat the Trojans kindly, when they shall 
arrive. She does not yet know of their presence in her territory, nor 
even of their existence, and therefore can not entertain feelings or 
thoughts in respect to them. — 305. Volvens = qui volvebat. — 
306. Alma. See on G. I. 7. — 307. Accesserit . . . teneant; 
depending on quaerere. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 308, Inculta = 
a desert. Gr. 441 and 2. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (2). Videt. Gr. 669. 
V. A. & S. 309. 2 (1). — 309. Exacta = the results of his search, 
his discoveries. — 310. In — nemorum = in a place where the 
woody shores (of the cove) narrow : more lit. in a narrowing of the 
groves ; i. e. where the forest-crowned shores approach each other, 
forming the head of the cove (v. 164). Convexo ; from conveho, I bring 
together. Cavata = overarching. — 311. Horrentibus. See on v. 
165.— 312. Comitatus. Gr. 221.2. A. & S. 162. 17 {a). — 313, Bina. 
Gr. 174. 2. 4). A. & S. 120. 4 (a). Crispans probably expresses 
the motion of the spear merely as carried in the hand in walking. 
Henry interprets it as "grasping, clenching." Ferro. Gr. 428. 
A. &S. 211, R. 6. — 314. Cui. Gr. 391. A. & S. 222, R. 1 (b). — 
315. Venus assumes the face and appearance of a virgin and the 
accoutrements of a huntress. — 316. Qualis — Harpalyce = (of 
such a virgin) as the Thracian Harpalyce (is, who, or, when she) tires 
horses ; i. e. by outrunning them. On the elliptical structure of the 



534 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

sentence, cf. v. 498 and IV. 143. Harpalyce was a daughter of Har- 
palycus, a Thracian king. After the death of her father, by whom 
she was trained in all manly exercises, she spent her time in the 
forests as a robber, being so swift in running that horses were unable 
to overtake her. — 317. Fuga ; of rapid movement in general. He- 
brum ; a river of Thrace, flowing into'the Aegean. — 318. Humeris. 
Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Habilem = well fitted, well shaped ; i. e. for 
the hand. — 319. Venatrix. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210, R. 4. Dif- 
fundere. Gr. 553. V. A. & S. 274. 7 {b). — 320. Genu . . . sinus. 
Gr. 380 and 1. A. & S. 234. II. and R. 2. Nodo. Gr. 414 and 3. 
A. & S. 247 and 2. — 321 Prior. Gr. 174, note on primus. A.& S. 
120. 1. Juvenes. See on Hor. C. I. 2. 41. Monstrate . . . vidis- 
tis si; if you have seen . . . point out to me where she is ; not, tell 
me whether you have seen. — 322, Quam. Gr. 455 and 2. A. & S. 
137, R. (3). — 323. Tegmine lyncis. This was worn as a chlamys 
or scarf. — 324, Apri cursum = aprum currentcm ; i. e. a boar 
that has broken covert. Clamore ; sc. canum. — 326. Audita ; (sc. 
est) ; not = heard of, the reference being to clamore. Mihi. Gr. 388. 4. 
A. & S. 225. II. — 327. O would have been regularly followed by a 
voc. of her name ; for he is sure that she is a goddess ( dea certe), 
though he knows not what goddess. Quam te. Gr. 373. A. & S. 
230. Memorem. Gr. 485. A. & S. 260, R. 5. — 328. Hominem. 
Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 232 (2). Certe. Gr. 583. 2. A. & S. 277, R. 1. 
329. An . . . an, not = utrum . . . an, but two separate questions. 
Phoebi ; i. e. Apollo. Soror ; i. e. Diana. This is conjectured 
from her attire as a huntress. Sanguinis = generis. — 330. Sis 
felix. See on E. V. 65. Quaecumque ; i. e. qualiscumque dea es. 
331. Tandem = pray. In interrogations the word expresses im- 
patience. 332. Locorumque. Gr. 663. III. 4). A. & S. 307. 3. 
In scanning connect with the next verse. — 334. Multa . . . hostia. 
See on E. I. 34. — 335. Me . . . honore. Gr. 419. 2. A. & S. 244, 
R 1. — 336. Virginibus . . . mos, Gr. 390 and 2. A. & S. 227 
and R. 4. Gestare. Gr. 549. A. & S 269. — 337 Alte ; refer- 
ring to the height of the boot, which rose more than half way to the 
knee, and the object of which was to protect the feet and legs from 
brambles. Cf. E. VII. 32. — 338. Punica. The terms Poeni and 
Punicus point to the Phoenician origin of the Carthaginians. Tyrios j 
because Dido and her colony were from Tyre. Agenoris urbem. 
Carthage is so called in allusion to the descent of Dido from Agenor, 
the twin brother of Belus and king of Phoenicia. — 339. Fines Li- 
byci; i. e. the country, as distinguished from the city, is a part of Libya. 
Genus ; grammatically in apposition with fines, but in sense referring 
to the noun Libyes implied in Libyci. Cf. IV. 40. Bello. Gr. 414 
and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. — 340. Imperium is here the command, 









THE AENEID. BOOK I. 535 

not the domain. — 341. It is a long and intricate tale of wrong. — 
342. Sequar = I will recount in order. — 343. Huic conjux Gr. 
390 and 2. A. & S. 227 and R. 4. Agri. Gr. 399 and 2. 2). A. & S. 
213 and R. 1 (3). — 344. Phoenicum, Gr. 396. III. A. & S. 212, 
R. 2. Miserae ; for ab ea misera. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. Cf. 
IV. 31. Amore. Gr, 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 345. Pa- 
ter; Belus. See v. 621. Intactam; i. e. not previously married. 
Hence primis ; i. e. the auspices taken when she was married to Sy- 
chaeus, were the first ones. — 346. Ominibus ; the omens of the 
marriage sacrifice, and hence the marriage rite. A mixture of instr. and 
temp. abl. — 347. Scelere. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Immanior. 
The comparative is pleonastic. A. & S. 256, R. 13 (b). — 348. Sy- 
chaeum. For the variety of the quantity in the first syllable (cf. 
v. 348) see on v. 258. — 349. Aras; i. e. of the Penates. Cf. IV. 21. 
Atque couples caecus with impius. — 350. Incautum superat. Cf. 
III. 332. Amorum. Gr. 399. ■ A. & S. 213. — 352. Mains. Gr. 
443. A. & S. 205, R. 15. — 353. Inhumati. Cf. VI. 325-328.— 
354. Modis. Join with pallida. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. 
— 356. Nudavit = disclosed. Domus scelus = the domestic 
crime ; i. e. as perpetrated by her brother, not as perpetrated before 
the Penates. — 357. Celerare . . . excedere. Gr. 558, VI. and 3. 
A. & S. 273. 2. — 358. Auxilium. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204 and R. 
1 (a). Viae. Gr. 396. II. A. & S. 211, R. 2. Tellure = from the 
earth. In her dream the ghost seems to her to open the earth and 
dig out fr -om it the old treasures. — 360. His; i. e. by these revela- 
tions. — 361. Crudele = fierce, savage. — 362. Acer = keen, 
violent ; i. e. such as impels to action. Cf. III. 682. Both acer and 
crudele are emphatic. — 365. Locos. Gr. 379. 4 A. & S. 237, R. 
5 (r). — 366. Novae. See on v. 298. — 367. Mercati ; sc. sunt. 
Byrsam = (called) Byrsa. This word, whence the legend of the 
bull's hide (fivp<ra in Greek meaning a hide) arose, appears to have 
been the Greek corruption of Bosra, the Phoenician name of the 
citadel of Carthage. — 368. Taurino . . . tergo. The story was that 
they cut the hide so as to make one thong ; the bargain being that 
they should have as much ground as they could compass with a bull's 
hide. Possent. Gr. 485. A. & S. 366. 3. — 369. Tandem. See 
on v. 331. — 370. Talibus ; probably with quaerenti, though it may 
go with ille. — 371. Imo. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. — 372. 
Si — pergam; i. e. if I should tell my story throughout, beginning 
at the first. Pergam . . . vacet . . . componat. Gr. 502 ; 503 and 
III.; 509. A. & S. 261 and 2. — 373. Vacet = should you have 
leisure. — 374. Ante = first ; i. e. before I should finish. Diem 
. . . componat = would lay the day to sleep. Vesper ; the god of 
evening, the evening star personified. Clauso . . . Olympo = clos- 



536 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

ing the gates of heaven ; i. e. through which the day issues. Gr. 431. 
A. & S. 257. See on E. V. 56.-375. Troja; with vectos. — 376. 
Diversa per aequora=over various seas. Heyne and Forb. take 
it to mean, " out of our course." — 377. Forte sua = by its own 
chance, casualty ; i. e. without any purpose of ours. — 378. Raptos 

— mecum explains pins. — 380. Patriam ; because his ancestor 
Dardanus was born in Italy. Genus — summo is epexegetical of 
patriam. Genus ab = (my) ancestry (sprung) from. — 381. Fkry- 
gium ; i. e. that washes the shores of Troas. See on v. 182. — 382. 
Fata = oracles. Cf. IV. 345. The oracle itself is given, III. 94foll., 
by Apollo at Delos. — 3o3. Euro. See on v. 108. — 384. Ig- 
notus; i. e. in a land where I am unknown. — 385. Europa — 
pulsus. Cf. vv. 232, 333. Querentem ; for queri with sub. ace. — 
387. Haud . . . invisus = not odious. Coelestibus. Gr. 391. 
A. & S. 222, R. r. — 388. Carpis = thou enjoyest, breathest. Ad- 
veneris. Gr. 519. A. & S. 264. 8 (1). — 389. Modo = now. 
Perfer. Per implies that he is to go on till he reaches the place. — 
391. In tutum = into a safe place. Gr. 441. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (1). 
Aquilonibus. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. See on v. 108. — 392. 
Vani ; i. e. ignorant of what they pretended to understand. Cf. II. 
80. She sees the swans, and professes to interpret the omen on the 
spot by the rules her parents have given her. — 393. Bis senos . . . 
eyenos. The swans were the birds of Venus, and their number is 
that of the missing ships. Laetantes agmine. Gr. 414 and 2. 
A. & S. 247 and 1. Agmine is opposed to turbabat, and explained by 
ordine longo. Cf. agmen in v. 186, contrasted with miscetm. v. 191. 

— 394. Aetheria . . . lapsa plaga = swooping from the upper sky ; 
the aetheria plaga being higher than the coelum. Jovis ales; i. e. 
the eagle. Aperto . . . coelo = in the wide air ; harmonizing with 
turbabat = was scattering, dispersing. — 395, Ordine longo. Gr. 
414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 396. This perplexing line seems to 
answer in structure, and therefore probably in sense, to v. 400. Ca- 
pere has been variously understood either as to settle on or to mark 
out for settling (capere oculis). It seems best on the whole to take 
the former meaning, and to make captas = captas ab altera eyeno- 
rum parte ; i. e. some alight, others look down on those which have 
alighted, and already (jam) are preparing to follow them. Coetu 
cinxere polum is no objection to this interpretation, being evidently 
ornamental and only vaguely descriptive. — 398. Cinxere polum = 
have wheeled in circles through the air. — 399. Pubesque tuorum 
= your companions. Tuorum is distinguished from tuae merely for 
variety's sake. — 400. Tenet . . . subit. Gr. 463 and I. A. & S. 
209, R. 12 (3).— 401. Qua — via. Cf. E. IX. 1. — 402. Rosea — 
refulsit = with her rosy neck she threw back a brilliant light. — 403. 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 537 

Divinum . . . odorem ; i. e. a fragrance such as the gods diffuse. — 
404. Defluxit. Her short hunting-tunic is changed into the flowing 
robe characteristic of a god or goddess. — 405. Incessu. Cf. v. 46. 
— 408. Ludis = mock. — Jungere. Gr. 549. A. & S. 269. — 409. 
Datur. Gr. 640, Ex. A. & S. 290 (a). — Veras; i. e. without dis- 
guise on the one part or mistake on the other. — 411. Obscuro . . . 
aere = with a dark mist. — 412. Multo = thick. — Circum . . . fu- 
dit; a tmesis for circumfudit. Gr. 384. 1. A. &. S. 249, R. 3. — Dea 
(= as a goddess) is added rhetorically, expressing the divine power 
exerted in the action. Cf. vv. 691, 692. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204 — 
413. Contingere = to injure. — 414. Moliri = to cause. — 415. 
Paphum. See on G. II. 64. Gr. 379. A. & S. 237. — Sublimis 
= through the air. — 416. Laeta ; probably to be contrasted with 
tristior, v. 228. Templum ; sc. est. Sabaeo. See on G. I. 57, 
and compare Milton, Par. Lost, IV. 161 : " Sabaean odors from the 
spicy shores of Araby the blest." — 417. Ture . . . sertis. Gr. 414 
and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 418. Corripuere viam. See on Ov. 
M. II. 158. Qua semita monstrat; like qua te ducit via, v. 401. 
Elsewhere via and semita are opposed, as a main road and a by-path ; 
here via is general, semita particular. — 419. Plurimus = of great 
size. — 421. Molem = massive structures. Magalia = mere huts. 
The contrast is in the poet's own mind, not in that of Aeneas. Gr. 
363. A. & S. 204 — 422. Strata viarum = paved streets. Gr. 396, 
III. A. & S. 212, R. 3, N. 4 The expression is partly partitive and 
partly that of quality. — 423. A semicolon is commonly placed at 
Tyrii ; but insto is found with the infin. in II. 627, X. 118. Pars 
. . . pars; i. e. part are at work on the fortifications, part on the 
houses. Cf. E. I. 65, 66. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204, R. 10. Ducere 
= to extend. — 424. Moliri = to build. Arcem ; the citadel 
proper, as distinguished from the arces, v. 420. — 425. Optare = to 
choose ; i. e. with auspices. Cf. III. 132. Sulco is generally 
taken as the trench for the foundations. — 426. Jura — legunt, a 
zeugma for jura constituunt viagistratusque legunt. Gr. 704. I. 2. A. 
& S. 323. 1 (2) (a). Sanctum; the regular epithet of the Roman 
senate. — 427. Effodiunt. The harbor of Carthage was artificial. — 
429. Scenis . . . futuris = for the future stage. For the strict 
meaning of sccna see on v. 164. The dat. limits, not decora, but some 
omitted participle. Gr. 392, 1 ; 398, 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5, N. — 430. 
Quails implies some such antecedent clause as talis labor Poenos 
cxercet. See on v. 316. — Aestate nova; in the first bright days 
of summer, when the hive, awakened from its winter torpor, is busiest 
and most like a young colony. The divisions here introduced by cum 
imply, not different times, but different parties, and so are parallel to 
the different occupations of the Carthaginians. Cf. G. IV. 162- 169. 



538 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

— 432. Liquentia; from liquor, not liqueo. — 433. Nectare. Gr. 
87. II. 1. A. & S. 82, Ex. 1 (b). — 435. Pecus. Gr. 363. A. & S. 
204. — 436. Thymo. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 437. 
The want of a city is the key-note of the whole Aeneid. Aeneas 
envies the Carthaginians as he envies Helenus and Andromache, III. 
493 foil. — 438. Suspicit. He has now descended the hill. — 439. 
Mirabile dictu. See on v. in. — 440. Miscet probably borrows 
se from the previous line, as no other instance is quoted of its intran- 
sitive use. Viris. Gr. 385. 5. A. & S. 245. II. R. 1. Ulli. Gr. 
388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. 

441-493. Aeneas enters a grove, where a temple is building to 
Juno. There he sees represented the various incidents of the Trojan 
war. — 441. Lucus is a sacred grove. Laetissimus = very abun- 
dant ; and therefore causing/^. Umbrae. Gr. 399 and 2. 2). A. & S. 
213 and R. 1 (3). —442. Primum; with effodere. — 443. Sig- 
num ; the, not a, sign ; i. e. the sign which Juno had, in some way 
not here described, taught them to expect. — 444. Caput. A horse's 
head is common on Punic coins. Cf. III. 539 foil. Sic ; i. e. by this 
sign. Fore ; sc. monstrarat. Bello. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 
445. Facilem victu = wealthy ; lit. easy to live. Some take victu 
from vinco (in which case facilem victu. = victorious) ; but cf. G. II. 
460, fundit humo facilem victum justissi?na tellus (of which expres- 
sion this, as Heyne remarks, is only a variety), and VIII. 318, asper 
victu venatus. Bello egregiam et facilem victu thus answers to the two 
characteristics of Carthage, v. 14, dives opum studiisque asperrima 
belli. — 446. Sidonia. Dido is so called from Sidon, the most an- 
cient city of Phoenicia, and the mother-city of Tyre. — 447. Donis 

— divae = enriched by offerings and by the especial presence of the 
goddess. It is a zeugma. See on coluisse, v. 16. There was doubt- 
less a statue, though this is implied rather than expressed by numen 
both here and in IV. 204. — 448. The threshold was of brass, with 
steps leading up to it. Cui gradibus = from the steps of which. 
Gr. 384 ; 422. 2. A. & S. 223 ; 255, R. 3 (6). Nexaeque aere 
trabes = and doorposts bound (i. e. plated and fastened) with brass. 
Surgebant is to be supplied to' trabes, but so that nexae aere shall be a 
predicate. See on v. 332. — 449. Foribus — aenis. Gr. 704. I. 1 ; 
384. A. & S. 323. 1 (b) ; 223. In translating supply while. 452. 
Rebus. Gr. 385. 1. A. & S. 223, R. 2. — 453. These representa- 
tions are probably on the doors or external walls of the temple. Sub 
then will express that Aeneas is looking up. Compare the sculptures 
mentioned at G. III. 26; A. VI. 20. Singula = the objects one by 
one. — 454. Quae — urbi . . . miratur ; for miratur fortunam urbis 
= marvels at the prosperity of the city ; i. e. as shown in the splen- 
dor of its temple. Gr. 445 j 485. A. & S. 206 (6) {b) ; 266. 3. — 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 539 

455. Maims = skill. Inter se = compared with one another. 
Operumque laborem, probably referring to the magnitude of the 
work rather than to the elaborate detail. — 457. This line gives the 
reason why the battles have been painted, and prepares us for the 
thoughts that follow. — 458. Atridas = the sons of Atreus ; i.e. 
Agamemnon and Menelaus. Priamum ; the son of Laomedon, and 
the last king of Troy. Ambobus ; i. e. to the sons of Atreus as one 
party, by his wrath on account of Brisei's and his consequent with- 
drawal from the contest ; and to Priam as the other party, in the slay- 
ing of so many of his sons. — 459. Jam = by this time. — 460. La- 
boris = misfortune, sorrow, disaster. — 461. Priamus. Gr. 367. 3. 
A. & S. 209, R. 13. Sua. Gr. 449. II. 2. A. & S. 208 (7) {a). 
Laudi = worth, merit Cf. V. 355. — 462. Rerum. See on v. 178. 
— 463. Haec fama; i.e. this knowledge of our glory. — 465. 
Multa. Gr. 371. 1. 3) (2). A. & S. 205, R. 10. —466. Uti = how. 
Pergama, properly the citadel of Troy, is often used, as here, for 
Troy itself. — 467. Hac = here ; i. e. in this part of the picture, or 
of the series of pictures. Fugerent. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. So 
premeret and instaret. -^468. Phryges. See on v. 182. Curru. 
Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. — 469. Rhesi; a Thracian 
prince, and an ally of the Trojans in their war with the Greeks. 
Niveis — velis. An anachronism similar to that noticed in v. 169. 
The Homeric Kklaiai were huts of planks thatched with grass. In 
the treatment of antiquities, Virgil generally inclines to Roman no- 
tions, and especially to the usages of his own age. Velis. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. 470. Primo — somno = which betrayed by the 
first sleep. Whether the first time they slept or the first part of their 
sleep, as being the deepest, is meant, the critics cannot decide. — 471. 
Tydides. See on v. 97. Caede. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 
2.-472. Avertit. Gr. 467. III. A. & S. 145. I. 3. Castra; i. e, 
the Grecian camp. — 473. Gustassent . . . bibissent. Gr. 523. II. 
and 1. A. & S. 263. 3. The subj. denotes the intention of Dio- 
medes. Eustathius and Serv. say that this intention was to prevent 
the accomplishment of an oracle, that if the horses of Rhesus tasted 
the grass or water of Troy the city should not be taken. Xanthum ; 
a name of the Scamander. See on Simois, v. 100. — 474. Parte 
alia ; i. e. of the picture. Troilus ; a son of Priam, slain by Achil- 
les. Armis ; i. e. all but the spear, which he still held (v. 478). — 
475. Atque couples impar congressus with infelix. Impar = in 
unequal combat. Achilli. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 476. Fer- 
tur equis ; i. e. is run away with. Cf. G. I. 513. Curru — inani. 
He has fallen backwards from the car (war chariots were made low 
and open behind), but hangs by the reins, which were passed round 
the body, and which he still grasps with his hand. — 477. Huic. Gr. 



54-0 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 478. Hasta; the spear of Troilus. 
479. Interea introduces another scene in the series of paintings. 
Non aequae = unpropitious. — 480. Peplura ; a large shawl, 
often very skilfully and richly wrought, an important part of female 
dress. It is here borne as a propitiatory offering. — 481. Pectora. 
Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. —482. Solo. . Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 
254, R. 3.-484. Auro. Gr. 416. A. & S. 252. Cf. VI. 621. 
Vendebat ; i. e. to Priam, who came to beg the body of his son, 
bringing as a ransom ten talents of gold. — 486. Spolia; i.e. of 
Hector. Currus ; probably of Achilles. — 487. Inermes = un- 
armed ; and so suppliant. — 488. Principibus. Gr. 385. 5. A. & S. 
245. II. R. 1. — 489. Memnonis. Memnori, an Ethiopian prince, 
son of Tithonus and Aurora, and nephew of Priam, came with a large 
body of Oriental and Ethiopian troops to assist his uncle in the Tro- 
jan war. He slew Antilochus, the son of Nestor, and was himself 
slain by Achilles in single combat. He is called niger as being an 
Ethiopian. He had arms made by Vulcan. — 490. Amazonidum. 
The Amazons were a warlike race of women said to inhabit the coun- 
try about Mt. Caucasus. Towards the end of the Trojan war, they 
came, under their queen Penthesilea, to the assistance of Priam ; but 
the queen was killed by Achilles. Peltis. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, 
R. 6. —491. Penthesilea. Gr. 612. III. 5. A. & S. 283. I. Ex. 
6. — 492. Exsertae = bare, uncovered. — 493. Bellatrix . . . 
virgo = as a warrior — though a virgin. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. 
Both words are made strongly emphatic by their position. 

494. Dardanio = Trojano. Aeneae. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. 
II. — 495. Obtutu = steady gaze. — 496. Forma. Gr. 429. A. 
& S. 250. 1. Incessit conveys a notion of majesty, as incedo in v. 
46. Juvenum. See on G. I. 500. — 498. Qualis. The corre- 
sponding talis is found in v. 503. Eurotae ; the principal river of 
Laconia, on the banks of which Sparta stood, where Diana was wor- 
shipped with peculiar honors. Cynthi ; a mountain in the island 
of Delos, celebrated as the birthplace of Apollo and Diana. — 499. 
Exercet . . . choros = leads the choral dances. — 500. G-lome- 
rantur = are gathered together. Oreades. See on E. V. 75. Hu- 
mero. Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 501. Gradiens = as 
she walks. — 502. Latona ; the mother of Apollo and Diana. — 
503. Se ferebat = advanced. See on v. 189. Cf. V. 290. — 504. 
Instans — futuris ; i. e. urging on the work which was to set up 
her kingdom. — 505. Foribus — templi = at the gate of the god- 
dess, in the centre (lit. of the vaulted roof) of the temple. Foribus 
divae is the gate of the cella, or chapel, in which was the statue of 
the goddess. — 506. Armis ; i. e. of her attendants, body-guards. 
Solio ; by, not on, the throne. Subnixa means supported from be- 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 541 

neath. — 507. Jura — legesque = a constitution and laws. Jura 
are principles of law, leges special enactments. — 508. Partibus. 
Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — Sorte. Gr. 414 and 4 A. & 
S. 247 and 3. The common phrase is sortem trahere. — 509. Con- 
cursu. probably the throng of Carthaginians collecting around them. 
Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 510. Anthea. See on v. 181. 
Cloanthum Cf. v. 222. Sergestus is mentioned for the first time. 

— 512. Penitus = far away. Oras. Gr. 379. 4. A. & S. 237, R. 
5 (e). — 513. Obstupuit — metuque = both he himself and 
Achates were at the same instant struck dumb both with joy and 
fear. Perculsus (for which most editions have percussus) is a partici- 
ple, used as a synonyme of obstuptcit, the ablatives referring to both 
words. On swiul . . . simul comp. V. 675. Obstupuit and perculsus 
refer of course to both subjects. Gr. 463. I. ; 439. A. & S. 209, R. 
12, N. 9 ; 205, R. 2, Ex. — 514. Avidi should be taken closely 
with ardebant, as if it were avide. — 515. Res — incognita is ex- 
plained by the questions in vv. 517 foil. — 516. Dissimulant = they 
repress their emotions. Cava = enshrouding. Speculantur = 
they watch (to discover) ; i. e. as from a secure place of observation. 

— 517. Fortuna ; sc. sit. — 518. Quid. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 
(3). — Cunctis . . . navibus ; join with lecti. — 519. Orantes 
veniam = to sue for favor ; i. e. for the favors specified in v. 525. 
The use of the pres. part, to express purpose is unusual. Cf. scitan- 
tem, II. 114 Gr. 578. V. A. & S. 274, R. 2 {a). — 520. Intro- 
gressi ; sc. sunt. — 521. Maximus ; sc. natu. — 522. Condere. 
See on v. 66. — 523. Gentes . . . superbas ; i. e. the neighboring 
barbarians of Africa, not the Carthaginians, to whom gentes would 
not be applicable. Maria — vecti = borne over all seas. Maria 
may be governed by per understood, or may be referred to Gr. 380. 
A. & S. 234. II. — 525. Infandos ; i. e. so horrible as to be unutter- 
able. The Carthaginians were treating the Trojans as pirates. — 526. 
Pio. See on pietas, v. 10. Propius = more closely. — 527. Popu- 
lare . . . vertere. Gr. 553. V. A. & S. 271, N. 3. Penates = 
homes. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324 2. — 528. Raptas . . . vertere 
= rapere et vertere. See on v. 69. Vertere = avertere. Cf. v. 472. — 
529. Non — animo = such violence belongs not to our nature (pio 
generi, v. 526). Superbia = audacity, daring. = 530. For the con- 
struction comp. v. 12 and note. Hesperiam. Gr. 373. A. & S. 
230. Cognomine. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 532. Oenotri ; 
said to be so called from Oenotrus, a king of Arcadia, who planted 
a colony in the south of Italy. Fama. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. — 
533. Dixisse. Gr. 549. A. & S. 269. Ducis ; i. e. Italus, a fabu- 
lous king of Italy. Such names, derived from the country, but said 
to give name to it, are called eponymous. Gentem ; the nation, for 



54 2 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

the land. — 534. Hie cursus fuit = this was our course. Some 
editions have hue, but it does not rest on so good authority as hie. 
Such unfinished lines are often met with in the Aeneid. See Life. 

— 535. Subito — fluctu = rising with a sudden swell. Adsurgens 
is intended to combine the rising of the star and the rising of the wave. 
For adsurgens fluchc in the latter sense comp. G. II. 160 and note. 
Nimbosus ; because the rising, and also the setting, of the constel- 
lation of Orion was believed to be accompanied with storms. The 
rising is about midsummer, which agrees with the time here, v. 756. — 
536. Caeca = latentia. Penitus. See on v. 512. Procacibus 
= boisterous. Austris ; for ventis. See on v. 108. — 537. Super- 
ante sale- = the sea overpowering (us). Cf. vicit kiems, v. 122. — 
538. Pauci ; i. e. a poor remnant compared with the whole. Cf. 
VI. 744. Adnavimus = drifted, floated. Cf. IV. 613 ; VI. 358. 
Vestris . . . oris is epexegetical of hue. See on E. I. 54. — 539. 
Quod genus = what sort of a race ; quod inquiring after the char- 
acter rather than the name. Quae . . . tam barbara . . . permittit. 
See on G. II. 315. Patria morem permittit is equivalent to terra 
tnorem sibi proprium permittit. See on G. I. 52. — 540. There is 
a pathetic force in hospitio : we are barred even from the welcome 
refuge which the shore gives the shipwrecked man. — 541. Bella 
cient ; referring to the guards which Dido stationed on the shore to 
prevent strangers from landing. See v. 564. Prima . . . terra = on 
the edge of the land ; i. e. on the shore. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, 
R. 17. — 543. At nefandi .= yet at least fear the gods, who re- 
member the righteous and the unrighteous deed. Spero in the sense 
of look for, expect, apprehend, is chiefly confined to poetry. Cf. IV. 
419. There is no occasion to understand/^ after deos. Fundi atque 
nefandi =fas atque nefas. — 544. Rex — nobis = Aeneas was our 
king ; not, we had a king called Aeneas ; which would imply that 
Aeneas was unknown. Gr. 390 and 2. A. & S. 227 and R. 4. Quo 

— alter; sc. neque. Gr. 417. A. & S. 256. 2. — 545. Pietate*. . . 
bello. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. So officio, v. 548. — 546. Vesci- 
tur = enjoys, breathes. Aura aetheria is the upper air as con- 
trasted with the lower world (crudelibus umbris). — 547. Umbris. 
Gr. 422 and I. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 548. Non metus ; sc. est 
nobis ; i. e. if our king is safe, we have no cause of fear. This inter- 
pretation is in harmony with v. 562. Officio — poeniteat = and 
may you not repent of having taken the lead in the rivalry of good 
deeds. Certasse, like poeniteat, assumes that Dido has already done 
what Ilioneus asks her to do. — 549. Et = moreover, besides. It is 
difficult to determine the exact point of this sentence, as et may mean, 
besides Aeneas, we have other protectors who may receive us and 
repay you, or, besides Carthage, we have other cities where we may 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 543 

settle, and are not come to intrude on you, or lastly, besides Italy, we 
have another chance if our hopes there are gone. The last would 
accord with the remainder of the speech, which dwells on the two 
courses open to them, that of fulfilling their Italian destiny should 
Aeneas be alive, or that of settling in Sicily should he and his heir 
be dead. — 550. Armaque. Arvaque is the common reading. — A 
sanguine ; without a participle or word indicating origin, V. 299. 
— 551. Liceat = permit (us). Subducere is opposed to deducere, 
to launch. — 552. Silvis. Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. 
Stringere remos ; i. e. to clear branches or trees of their leaves 
and twigs for oars. Cf. G. II. 368. — 553. Construe ut — petamus 
before si datur, etc. Italiain. See on v. 2. — 555. Pater optime. 
Cf. V. 358. — 556. Spes . . . Iuli; not the hope of the kingdom en- 
tertained by lulus, but the hope of manhood supplied or afforded by 
lulus. Iuli is an objective gen. Cf. IV. 274 ; VI. 364. — 557. At 
. . . saltern = yet at least. Sicania ; i. e. Sicilia. Sedesque pa- 
ratas ; opposed to those which they would have yet to build. Cf. IV. 
75. — 558. Unde hue advecti. See on v. 34. Regem — Aces- 
ten; i. e. seek a king in Acestes, in place of Aeneas. — 559. Tali- 
bus; sc. verbis. The omission of the verb of saying is so common 
in the Aeneid and the supply is so easily made, that no further notice 
need be taken of it. Cuncti — fremebant; repeated at V. 385, 
where, as here, simid means not that they shouted all together, which 
is expressed by cuncti, but that they shouted assent to the speaker. — 
560. Dardanidae ; the Trojans. See on Troja, v. 1. — 561. Vul- 
tum. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 562. Corde. Gr. 425. 3. 2). 
A. & S. 251. — 563. Res dura = my hard case ; i. e. the difficulty 
she had in keeping her ground on a hostile territory, and her fears 
from her brother. — 564. Moliri implies effort. See on G. I. 329. 
Here it intimates the reluctance with which she had recourse to such 
expedients. Custode ; for custodibus, as often miles, eques, pedes, 
remex, etc. for their respective plurals. Cf. II. 20, 495. — 565. 
Nesciat. Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 260, R. 5.-566. Virtutes = 
gallant deeds. — 567. Obtunsa adeo = so dull ; not, unfeeling. 
Pectora = minds ; not hearts. — 568. Nee — urbe. Both this 
and the preceding line are intended to rebut the supposition of igno- 
rance respecting the history of Troy, not of want of feeling. The 
notion seems to be, We do not lie so far out of the pale of the civil- 
ized world, — out of the circuit of the sun and so out of the course of 
fame. Comp. VI. 795. — 569. Hespe'riam. See on v. 530 and 
cf. IV. 345. See also on Ov. M. I. 113. Saturniaque arva. 
See on E. IV. 6, and cf. VI. 794. See on Lavinaque litora, v. 2. — 
570. Erycis. Eryx is the name of a very ancient king of Sicily, slain 
by Hercules ; of a well-known mountain in the western part of that 



544 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

island ; and of a town on the northwestern slope of this mountain. 
Optatis = choose ; not, wish. — 571. Auxilio tutos = protected 
by an escort. Tutos is a participle, as in VI. 238. — 572. Et ; as in 
v. 549. Mecum pariter = on equal terms with me. — 573. Ur- 
bem. Gr. 445. 9. A. & S. 206 (6) {b). — 574. Mihi. See on stilt, 
v. 440. — 575. Noto. See on v. 108. — 576. Afforet. Gr. 488. I. 
1 and 2. A. & S. 263. 1 and R. Certos = trusty messengers. — 578. 
Si = to see whether ; to see being implied in lustrare. — 579. Ani- 
mum. See on v. 228. Arrecti = excited. — 582. Dea. 425.3.1). 
A. & S. 246. — 583. Receptos ; sc. esse. — 584. Unus ; Orontes. 
Cf. vv. 113 foil. ; VI. 334. — 585. Dictis . . . matris. Cf. vv. 390, 391. 

— 587. In — apertum = dissolves into clear ether. Purgat borrows 
se from scindit. — 589. Os. See on v. 228. — 591. Purpureum = 
glowing. See on E. V. 38. Laetos . . . honores = a sparkling 
lustre. — 592. Maims = the artist's hand ; same as artificum mantis, 
v. 455. Aut; sc. quale decus est. — 593. Parius; from Paros, one 
of the Cyclades, a group of islands in the Aegean sea, celebrated for 
its excellent marble. — 594. Cunctis ; with improvisus. Gr. 391. 
A. & S. 222. 3. — 597. Sola is to be understood loosely : alone of 
those not allied to Troy, and so excluding Helenus and Acestes. In- 
fandos. See on v. 525. Miserata. Gr. 577. A. & S. 274. 3 (a). 
Labores. See on v. 460. — 598. Nos . . . urbe — socias = dost 
make us the partners of your city and your home. The construction 
seems to be sodas (tibi or tecum) urbe, domo. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 
247 and 3. Reliquias Danaum. See on v. 30. — 599. Ex- 
haustos = attritos, vexatos. Omnium ; the only instance in 
which Virgil has used this form of the word. Gr. 399 and 2. 2). 
A. & S. 213 and R. 1 (3). — 601. Non — nostrae = it is not with- 
in our means, in our power. Gr. 401 ; 402 and I. A. & S. 211, R. 8 
(3). Nec — Dardaniae = nor (is it in the power) of the Dardanian 
race, whatever of it there is anywhere. Join gentis with quidquid. — 
602. Magnum — orbem ; both as fugitives and captives. — 603. 
Qua — numina. Cf. II. 536. V. 688. Quid. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. 

— 604. Si quid — recti; i. e. if justice and conscious rectitude be 
of any account anywhere on earth. Sibi . . . recti. Gr. 391. 5. 
A. & S. 222, R. 3. — 605. Ferant. Gr. 488. I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. 
Quae — saecula. For the construction cf. v. 539. G. II. 315. — 
607. Montibus — convexa = the shadows shall traverse the hol- 
lows of the mountains. Umbrae ; not the shadows of the woods, but 
those cast by the hills themselves. E. I. 84. Lustrabunt ; of the 
shadows moving with the sun. With convexa cf. convexo nemortim, 
v. 310, and the word convallis. — 609. Repeated from E. V. 78. — 
610. Cumque ; separated from quae by tmesis. — 614. Casu . . . 
tanto = at the stupendous disaster. — 615, 616. Quis . . . cair.s 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 545 

== quae fortuna. Cf. v. 240. The meaning seems to be, " How in- 
veterate the ill-fortune that persecutes you ! how savage the violence 
that leads you here ! " the question being one of wonder. In v. 9 he 
is driven through casus ; here the cants drives him. Immanibus = 
savage ; i. e. with reference to the Libyans. Applicat = appellit, 
v. 377. — 617. Gr. 672. 3. A. & S. 310. 1. Notice the non-elision 
of the o. — 618. Alma. See on G. I. 7. Phrygil See on v. 182. 

— 619. Teucrum; not the first king of Troy (see on v. 1), but a 
son of Telamon, king of Salamis, and Hesione, daughter of Laome- 
don and sister of Priam, and the step-brother of Ajax the elder. See 
on Hor. C. I. 7. 21. 622, Cyprum ; a large island in the Mediter- 
ranean Sea, off the south coast of Asia Minor, renowned for its fruitful - 
ness and its rich mines of copper. See on Hor. C. III. 29. 60. Di- 
cione. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Cf. v. 236. — 623. Casus 
may mean strictlv/tf// here and in II. 507. Mihi Gr. 388. II. A. & S. 
225. II. — 624. Pelasgi ; a name properly applied to the most ancient 
inhabitants of Greece, put poetically for Graeci. — 625. Hostis = 
though an enemy. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. Ferebat = used to ex- 
tol. — 626. Se . . . volebat = gave himself out (to be), gave out 
that he (was) ; i. e. being the son of Hesione, the daughter of Laom- 
edon, king of Troy. See on Teucrum, v. 619. — 627. Juvenes. 
See on Hor, C. I. 2. 41. — 628. Per multos . . . labores ; with 
jactatam. Cf. VI. 693. — 629. Consistere terra. Cf. VI. 807. 

— 631, 632. Simul . . . simul = at the same time, both . . . and. 
Here, as in II. 220, they couple two verbs with the same subject : 
in v. 513, V. 675, two subjects with the same verb. Templis. Gr. 
422 and 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. Indicit honorem = orders a sacri- 
fice ; i. e. in honor of the preservation of Aeneas. — 636. Munera 

— dei == (and) the gifts and joy of the god ; i. e. wine. Most of the 
late editors adopt the reading dii, which they make a contraction for 
diet, and understand the phrase to mean, as gifts and the means of 
rejoicing for the day, construing munera and laetitiam in apposition 
with the preceding accusatives. Dei is said to be the reading of 
almost all the existing MSS., is preferred by Forb. and Henry, and 
adopted by Con., whose text we follow. It is certainly natural that 
wine should form a part of Dido's presents ; and the expression is 
resolvable into munera laetifica dei laetitiae datoris. Cf. v. 734, laetitiae 
Bacchus dator. — 637. Interior. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. 
Regali — instruitur = is being set out in the splendor of royal 
magnificence. Splendida is proleptic (see on G. II. 353), belonging 
in sense with the predicate, but in construction with the subject. 
Luxu ; with splendida. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 638. 
Mediis . . . tectis is explained by domus interior. — 639. Vestes 
for stragulae vestes = coverlets. Sc. sunt or instruuntur. So for the 

35 



546 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

other nominatives. Ostro; with vestes. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. 

— 640. On the table was spread massive silver plate, and vessels of 
gold chased with legends. Ingens probably includes both massive- 
ness and quantity." The gold seems to be plate also, cups, etc. — 
642. Ducta = traced. — 644. Rapidum explains praemittit. Acha- 
tes is sent express to bring Ascanius in time for the feast which is 
about to begin. — 645. Ferat = bidding him to report. Ferat . . . 
ducat are perhaps best explained as an oratio obliqua ; Ascanio fer 
ipsumque due. Gr. 530. II. and 3. 2). A. & S. 266. 2, R. 1 [b), 
praemittit implying a message or command. Haec refers to the inci- 
dents that have just transpired. — 646. Cari = fond. Stat implies 
perpetuity and constancy. — 647. Munera = as presents ; i. e. for 
the queen. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. — 648. Pallam. The palla was 
a long garment or robe worn by women and by persons of dignity, 
especially by the gods. Signis auroque ; for signis aureis. Gr. 414 
and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 649. Circumtextum = bordered all 
around. Acantho ; i. e. the figures of the leaves and flowers of this 
herb were interwoven in the border of the garment. — 650. Argivae 
= Graecae. Helenae. Helena, daughter of Jupiter and Leda, and 
wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta, was the most beautiful woman of 
her age. In the absence of her husband, Paris, son of king Priam, 
carried her away, which was the cause of the ten years' war against 
Troy, and the destruction of that city. Mycenis ; put for Greece. 
See on v. 284. — 651. Pergama. See on 466. Peteret. Gr. 669. 
V. A. & S. 309. 2 (1). — 654. Maxima ; sc. natu. Collo; dat. of 
the remote object after ferre understood. Monile baccatum = a 
bead necklace. — 655. Duplicem — auroque = double with gems 
and gold ; duplicem probably referring merely to the combination or 
twofold character of the materials of which it was made. Gr. 414 
and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 656. Haec = these commands. Cele- 
rans = celeriter exsequens. 

657-694. Venus distrusts Dido, and lays a plot to secure her affec- 
tions by substituting Cupid for Ascanius, whom she conveys to Idalia. 

— 657. Cytherea. See on v. 257. — 658. Faciem . . . et ora = 
in shape and features. — 659. Donis ; with incendat. Gr. 414 and 4. 
A. & S. 247 and 3. Furentem incendat = inflame to madness. 
Furentem is proleptic. — 660. Ossibus. Ossa is put for the seat of 
feeling, like medullae. — 661. Domum. Cf. v. 284. Ambiguam 
= unreliable. Cf. Junonia hospitia, v. 671, and IV. 96. Bilingues; 
treacherous : an anticipation of the Roman feeling against Carthage, 
which found expression in the proverbial phrase Punica fides. — 662. 
Urit = disturbs, disquiets (her). Sub noctem = toward night, as 
night approaches. — 664. Meae — solus ; i. e. (qui) solus (es) 
meae vires, mea magna potentia. — 665. Tela Typhoia; i. e. thun- 



THE AENEID. BOOK I. 547 

derbolts : the missiles are called Typhoean from the giant Typhoeus, 
whom Jupiter slew with them. — 666. Numina = divine power. — 
668. Jactetur. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 669. Nota ; a Grecism 
for notum. A. & S. 205, R. 8 (b). Dolore. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. — 671. Quo se . . . vertant ; i. e. what may be their issue. 
Junonia ; under the influence of Juno. — 672. Cardine = at a 
crisis. Gr. 426 and 1. A. & S. 253 and N. 1. — 674. Ne — mutet 
= that she may not change through the influence of any divinity ; i. e. 
by Juno's influence. — 675. Mecum = along with me, as well as I. 
Teneatur ; sc. ut from the preceding ne. — 676. Qua ; i. e. qua 
ratione. — 677. Regius . . . puer. Cf. rex Aeneas, v. 544. — 679. 
Pelago. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3. (b). Restantia = saved. 
— 680. Cythera. See on v. 257. — 681. Idalium; a mountain 
and town in the island of Cyprus, pre-eminently sacred to Venus, 
who hence bore the surname Idalia. — 682. Qua. See on v. 18. 
Dolos = the plot. Mediusne occurrere == to present himself 
in the midst of it ; i. e. to interfere with it. — 683. Faciem. See 
on v. 658. — Noctem . . . amplius. Gr. 378 ; 417. 3. A. & S. 236 ; 
256, R. 6. — 684. Falle dolo = personate. Notos ; not known to 
Cupid, but = solitos. — 686. Laticemque Lyaeum = vinum. See 
on G. II. 229. — 688. Fallasque veneno; i.e. poison her unob- 
served. Vetieno ; i.e. of love. — 689. Carae. See on v. 646. — 
690. Gressu, with incedit. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. 
Gaudens, like laetus in v. 696, expresses the sly pleasure with which 
he enters into his part. Incedit. Cf. vv. 46, 405. — 691. Ascanio. 
Gr. 398. 5 ; 392. 1. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 692. Irrigat = diffuses. 
Cf. v. 854. Gremio. Gr. 422. A. & S. 254, R. 3. Dea. See on 
v. 412. — 693. Idaliae ; the same as Idalium, v. 681. — 694. Flori- 
bus . . . umbra ; with complectitur. — 697. Venit. Tense ? Au- 
laeis . . . suberbis=with rich tapestries. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, 
R. 6. — 698. Aurea ; here a dissyllable. Composuit . . . locavit. 
Gr. 471. I. A. & S. 258, A. Sponda; properly the open side of 
the couch, here the couch itself. Mediam = in the centre ; i. e. of 
the triclinium, or table-couch, which extended on three sides of the 
table. This seems to have been the host's place. — 700. Super 
may be taken either as a preposition {cowvp. frcmde super viridi, E. I. 
81) or adverbially — on purple spread over (the couch), a view sup- 
ported by v. 708. — 701. Cererem; for panem. Cf. v. 175. Ca- 
nistris expediunt = serve out from baskets. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 
255, R. 3 (b). — 702. Tonsis . . . villia = with shorn nap ; i. e. 
smooth, soft. Gr. 428. A. & S. 21 1, R. 6. — 703. Intus ; i. e. in the 
inner apartment where the culinary operations were carried on. 
Famulae. Gr. 460. 3. A. & S. 209, R. 4. Quibus ; sc. est. Gr. 
390 and 2. A. & S. 227 and R. 4. Ordine = in turn; referring to 



548 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

the division or course of labor among the servants. Cf. v. 102. Gr. 
414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Ordine longo is the common read- 
ing. Longam . . . penum = the long store of food : longam refer- 
ring either to the arrangement of the dishes in long rows or to the 
quantity ; i. e. a store that will last for a long time. A passage of 
Ausonius (Idyll. 3. 27) seems to confirm the latter explanation : Con- 
duntur fructus geminum mihi semper in annum. Cui non longa penus, 
huic quoque prompta fames. Serv., too, confirms it in his explanation 
of the difference between penus and cellarium. He says that cellarium 
is paucorum dierum, penus temporis longi. Struere will then have 
nothing to do with the office of structor, the arranger of the dishes, 
but will be the same as instruere = to furnish, or replenish. — 704. 
Cura. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. Flammis — Penates probably 
refers to the burning of incense for the worship of the Penates. 
Some understand it of keeping up the fires for cooking. — 706. Qui. 
Gr. 439. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 2 (1). Onerent . . . ponant. Gr. 500. 
A. & S. 264. 5. — 708. Toris — pictis is merely a poetical phrase 
for, bidden to the banquet. — 710. Flagrantes = glowing. — 711. 
Pictum. Cf. v. 649. — 712. Pesti = exitio. Cf. IV. 90. — 713. 
Mentem. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 715. Complexu . . . col- 
loque = in the embrace and on the neck. — 716. Falsi — pretended. 
718. Gremio fovet = cherishes in her bosom. He was probably 
reclining next to her at table. This explains interdum. — 719. In- 
sideat = is resting upon (thee). — 720. Acidaliae, an epithet of 
Venus, derived from Acidalius ; a spring in Boeotia, where the Graces, 
the attendants of Venus, used to bathe. — 721. Praevertere = pre- 
possess. Vivo . . . amore ; i. e. for a living object. — 722. De- 
sueta = (long) unused (to it) ; i. e. to love. 

723. Mensae = the courses. See on v. 216. — 724. Crateras. 
Gr. 98. A. & S. 85, Ex. 2. These were vessels in which the wine, 
according to the custom of the ancients, who very seldom drank it 
pure, was mixed with water, and from which the cups were filled. 
Vina coronant See on G. II. 528. — 725. Fit strepitus. The 
noise (i. e. of conversation and festivity) begins again after the pause 
made by clearing away the food. — 726. Aureis. See on v. 698. — 
727. Funalia appear to be tapers formed of a twist (funes) of some 
fibrous plant covered with wax. — 728. Hie; of time. Cf. II. 122; 
III. 369. Gemrais auroque. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. 
— 729. Quam ; sc. implere mero. — 730. A Belo ; sc. orti. Cf. 
v. 160, G. II. 243. Belus here is not Dido's father (v. 621), but the 
supposed founder of the Tyrian dynasty. — 733. Velis = grant. 
Gr. 488 and I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Hujus; sc. diei. Gr. 406. II. 
A. & S. 216. — 734. Bona Juno = Juno, the giver of blessings; 
sc. adsit. Wr. says, join adsit bona. — 735. Coetum . . . celebrate 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 549 

= solemnize the festive gathering. Faventes. She first bespeaks 
the favor of the gods, and then of the people. — 736. In mensara ; 
the altar, as it were, of Hospitable Jove. Laticum . . . honorem 
= a libation of wine. — 737. Libato (sc. honore) = the libation hav- 
ing been made. Libato may perhaps be the impersonal participle 
used absolutely. Gr. 431. 5. A. & S. 257, R. 9 (1) (<r). Summo 

— ore ; i. e. she barely tasted the remaining contents of the bowl. 

— 738. Increpitans = challenging ; not implying reproach, but 
merely invitation. Impiger = not slow. Hausit and se proluil are 
opposed to summo tenus atiigit ore. — 739. Se proluit = drenched 
himself. Auro. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. — 740. Crinitus. 
The bards used to wear their hair long, in imitation of Apollo. 

— 741. Personat = fills the hall. Docuit ; not to play the harp, 
but the natural sciences referred to in the following lines. Atlas. 
See on IV. 247. — 742. Labores. See on G. II. 478. — 744. Arc- 
turum. See on Ov. M. II. 176. Hyadas. See on Ov. M. III. 
595. Geminosque Triones. See on Ov. M. II. 171. — 745. 
Tinguere soles. See on G. II. 481. — 747. Ingeminant; abso- 
lute. Cf. G. I. 333. — 751. Aurorae . . . filius. See on v. 489. 
Armis. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 752. Diomedis. 
See on v. 97. Quantus. The notion of bulk is prominent, but not 
the only one. — 753. Immo = nay rather ; i. e. instead of answering 
more questions in detail, tell us the whole story from the first. — 754. 
Casus tuorum ; referring to those who perished at Troy. — 755. 
Nam ; i. e. you have the experiences of seven years to tell ; it will 
be better, therefore, that we should hear them continuously. 



THE AENEID. Book II. 

The voice of criticism has unanimously fixed on this book, along 
with the Fourth and Sixth, as affording the best evidence of the true 
greatness of Virgil. Donatus says that the poet himself chose these 
three books to read to Augustus as a specimen of his work. This 
may or may not be true, but it indicates at any rate the judgment 
passed by antiquity ; and modern opinion has not been slow to ratify 
the verdict. 

The subject of the present book is the capture and sack of Troy ; 
and its conception is eminently fortunate. Homer had made Ulysses 
tell the story of his wanderings to Alcinous, and so had supplied the 



55° NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

canvas on which the younger artist might work ; but the tale of Troy 
taken forms no part of the narrative of the Odyssey ; it is briefly sung 
by a bard, whose strains move the tears of Ulysses, as the Trojan' 
portraits of Carthage have moved those of Aeneas ; but that is all. 
It was open to Virgil to make his hero tell the whole story of the de- 
struction of Troy without trespassing on Homer's ground ; and he 
seized the opportunity. The subject could not fail to be most im- 
pressive, and it is introduced with perfect propriety. Dido, it is true, 
knew the main incidents of the siege ; but for that very reason she 
would wish to hear them from the chief living witness on the side of 
Troy. Virgil, too, has shown his wisdom not only in what he has said, 
but in what he has left unsaid. Dido's curiosity would naturally ex- 
tend over the whole ten years ; but the poet knew that a detail of the 
siege, natural as it might be, would weary his readers. He tells us 
that the queen asked of Priam and Hector, of Diomedes and Achilles ; 
but he does not require us to listen to Aeneas till he can concentrate 
our attention on " the last agony of Troy," the one night in which 
the city was taken and sacked. 



ARGUMENT. 

Aeneas, in compliance with Dido's request, details the particulars 
of the capture of Troy, so far as he had witnessed them. After ex- 
pressing reluctance to fight his disagreeable battles over again, the 
hero goes on to tell of the despondency of the Greeks in the tenth 
year of the war, together with their stratagem of the horse. Lurking 
in Tenedos, they send a cunning fellow, Sinon, to prepare the way 
for the reception of the wooden horse, which they pretended to be a 
return for the stolen Palladium. The Trojans are credulous, and 
believe the whole, but Laocoon sees through the deceit, and exposes 
it. His warnings, however, are vain ; and he is himself slain by two 
serpents sent against him by Minerva (1-249). The Greeks return 
from Tenedos, the horse is opened, and the city is taken (250-267). 
Aeneas is warned by Hector's shade to consult for his safety, but he 
is too valiant to follow the suggestion before he has tried what might 
can do. He makes an attempt, and is for a while successful, till, hav- 
ing assumed the armor of some Greeks, whom they had slain, his 
associates are mistaken by the Trojans, and many of them killed by 
their own friends (268-437). Then follows the sack of Priam's 
palace, and the murder of the king himself (438 - 558). Aeneas, on 
his way homeward to save his father, is prevented from slaying Helen 
by a vision (559-631). Anchises refuses to seek safety, but at last, 
encouraged by heavenly signs, consents (632 - 704). The flight (705 - 






THE AENEID. BOOK II. 55 1 

735). Creusa, the wife of Aeneas, is lost in the confusion (736- 746). 
Aeneas, returning in search of her to the city, finds it wholly occupied 
by the Greeks (747-767). The ghost of Creusa appears to him, 
consoles, and counsels him to depart (768-794). He returns to his 
father and followers, and takes shelter in Mount Ida (795-804). 

1. Conticuere . . . tenebant. Mark the change of tense, and 
also the intense interest expressed by intenti. — 2. Toro ; the couch 
on which he was reclining at the banquet. — 3. Infandum. See 
on I. 525. Notice the emphatic position of the word. — 4. Ut (=how. 
See on I. 466) follows renovare dolorem, which is practically equiv- 
alent to narrare. Translate : to revive unutterable sorrow by relating 
how, &c. Lamentabile is proleptic. — 5. Quaeque = and (the 
things) which. The clause is epexegetical of dolorem, which is first 
explained generally by the clause Trojanas . . . Danai, and then lim- 
ited to the scenes which Aeneas witnessed and those in which he 
took an active part. — 6. Fando = in the course of speaking, while 
uttering. Gr. 566. 3 ; 426 and 1. A. & S. 275, R. 4, N. 2; 253 and 
N. 1. — 7. Myrmidonum Dolopumve; with qtcis, not miles. The 
Myrmidones and Dolopes were the soldiers of Achilles. So the epi- 
thet duri is intended to mark the soldier by the general. Ulixi. Gr. 
69. 5. A. & S. 73, R. Ulysses, the son of Laertes and Anticlea, 
king of the islands of Ithaca and Dulichium, and the husband of Pe- 
nelope, was distinguished among the Grecian chiefs for superior pru- 
dence and cunning. He is the hero of Homer's Odyssey. 8. Tem- 
peret (sc. sibi) = could refrain. Gr. 486. II. ; 476. A. & S. 260, 
R. 5 ; 145, N. 4. Et jam = and besides already : an additional 
reason for declining the task. Coelo. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 
3 (b). — 9. Praecipitat = is hurrying down ; i. e. midnight being 
past. The verb is here intransitive. Cf. avertit, I. 104, 402. — 10. 
Amor = desire. Sc. est tibi. Cf. VI. 133, where amor is immedi- 
ately explained by cupido. Cognoscere . . . audire. Gr. 563. 6. 
A. & S. 275, III. N. 1. 11. Laborem. See on I. 460. — 12. 
Meminisse = at the remembrance. Horret . . . refugit. Mark 
the change of tense : is shuddering . . . and has already shrunk from 
it through grief. See on G. I. 330. — 13. Incipiam = I will under- 
take. — 13 - 39. Despairing of reducing Troy by siege, the Greeks 
feign departure, having first built a wooden horse, which they fill with 
armed men, and leave behind them as a pretended offering to Pallas. 
The Trojans pour out of the town, and question what should be done 
with the horse, some being for taking it in, others for destroying it 
— 13. Fracti ; nearly the same as fessi, v. 109, but stronger. Re- 
pulsi ; i. e. beaten back from the attack on Troy. — 14. Labenti- 
bus ; not = /apsis, the point of completion not having yet been 



552 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

reached. — 15. Instar montis ; with reference to the height rather 
than to the bulk. Cf. vv. 185, 186. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. Pal- 
ladis. Pallas is selected from the deities favorable to the Greeks as 
the patroness of art. See on G. I. 18. — 16. Intexunt for texwtt = 
build, construct. Abiete. Gr. 669. II. and 3 ; 414 and 4. A. & S. 
306. 1 and (3) ; 247 and 3. — 17. Votum (sc. esse) = that it is a 
votive offering ; i. e. to Pallas for a safe return to their country. Serv. 
says there was an inscription on the horse to this effect. — 18. Hue 
. . . caeco lateri = into this, namely, within its dark side. See on 
E. I. 54. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Delecta virum . . . corpora ; 
poetically for delectos vivos. Sortiti = having cast lots (for them). — 
19. Penitus ; with complent. — 20. Milite. See on I. 564. — 21. 
Tenedos; a small but fertile island in the Aegean sea, opposite 
Troy, and about five miles from the shore. Dives opum. See on 

1. 14. — 23. Tantum sinus = there is only a bay ; i. e. the bay 
being all for which the place was then remarkable. Male fida = 
hardly safe, unsafe. Cf.-G. I. 105. — 24. Hue; with provecti, though 
it may go with condunt. — 25. Abiisse rati ; sc. eos sumns. My- 
cenas ; for Graeciam. — 26. Teucria. See on I. 1. — 27. Dorica ; 
for Graeca. — 29. Tendebat = pitched his tent. For the implied 
anachronism see on I. 469. — 30. Classibus hie locus. The ships 
were drawn up on the shore, and the tents pitched among them. 
The contrast is between classibtts and acie : here they encamped ; 
here they fought with us. Acie. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 

2. — 31. Minervae = to Minerva : the objective gen. The offer- 
ing was made to Minerva as one of the tutelary deities of Troy, whom 
the Greeks had outraged, and as such it was virtually an offering to 
Troy and the Trojans, — a consideration which reconciles the present 
passage with those where it is spoken of as a gift to the Trojans (vv. 
36, 44, 49), and accounts for the epithet exitiale. That some such 
object was pretended before Sinon came forward to develop the story, 
we have seen in v. 17. — 32. Mirantur. Gr. 461 and 1. A. & S. 
209, R. 1 1 (2). Thymoetes ; one of the elders of Troy. A sooth- 
sayer had predicted, that on a certain day a boy should be born, by 
whom Troy should be destroyed. On that day Paris was born to 
Priam, and Munippus to Thymoetes. Priam ordered Munippus and 
his mother Cilia to be killed. Hence Aeneas says that it was doubt- 
ful whether Thymoetes, in order to revenge himself, treacherously 
(dolo) advised to draw the wooden horse into the city, or whether he 
was so directed by fate. — 33. Duci — locari. Gr. 558. VI. 3. A. 
& S. 273. 2 and {b). — 34. Seu — ferebant = or (because) now at 
last the destiny of Troy thus directed. — 35. Capys ; a companion 
of Aeneas. Cf. I. 183. Quorum . . . menti = (those) to whose 
mind ; sc. erat. — 36. Aut . . . aut. Two plans are proposed : one 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 553 

to destroy, the other to examine the horse. These two propositions 
are separated by aut . . . aut. For the execution of the first plan two 
methods are suggested, — sinking and burning ; some are in favor of 
the one, and some of the other. This view of the case shows the 
propriety of the word que in v. 37, which is the reading of the MSS., 
rather than ve, which Heyne introduced, and which several later edi- 
tors have adopted. Pelago. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. 
Insidias ; for the horse itself, like doli, v. 264. — 38. Tentare = 
to search. — 39. Incertum = fickle. Studia = opinions ; imply- 
ing that they maintain their different views with warmth. — 41. 
Laocoon ; a priest of Apollo, and at this time acting priest of 
Neptune (v. 201). — 44. Sic notus Ulixes. Has this been your 
experience of Ulysses ? Ulysses is not mentioned as having actually 
been the principal in the plot, which the Trojans could not have 
known, but as the natural author of fraud. Cf. V. 164. — 45,46. 
Aut . . . aut. The two cases put in these lines are that the horse 
is a receptacle of soldiers, and that it is a means of scaling the walls. 
In the former case it would be fatal if admitted within the city ; in 
the latter, even if left outside. — 45. Achivi ; for Graeci. — 46. In 
= for, against. — 47. Inspectura = to overlook. Gr. 578. V. A. 
& S. 274, R. 6 (a). Ventura — urbi = to come down on the city 
from above ; i. e. not the machine, but those in it. Urbi ; for in 
urbem. See on pelago, v. 36. — 48. Aliquis = alius quis, some 
other. Error = deceit. — 49. Et '= etiam. Dona. See on v. 31. 

— 51. In alvum ; i. e. the spear pierced through the latus into the 
alvus. Gr. 47. 2. 2). A. & S. 49. 1. Feri = of the beast. Ferus 
is sometimes used of a tame animal. Cf. V. 818. Compagibus. 
Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 52. Ilia ; i. e. the spear. Re- 
cusso ; expressing the shock resulting from the blow. — 53. In- 
sonuere cavae = sounded as hollow. Gemitum ; merely of the 
hollow noise : not of the arms, as in v. 243 ; much less of those 
within. — 54. Si fata ( sc. fuissent) = if the fates had so willed. 
Non laeva. See on E. I. 16. — 55. Impulerat = he had im- 
pelled. See on G. II. 133. Foedare = to mutilate, cut in pieces. 

— 57. Manus. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 59. Ignotum = a 
stranger. Venientibus. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Ultro ; i. e. he 
had purposely thrown himself in their way. — 60. Hoc — strueret — 
to compass this very thing ; i. e. to be brought to the king. — 61. 
Fidens animi = confident of soul. Gr. 399. 3. 4). A. & S. 213 and R. 
1 (2). —62. Versare dolos = to carry out his wily plot. The in- 
finitives are in apposition with utrumque. — 64. Circumfusa ruit 
= throng around. Certant = vie with one another. Mark the 
change of number. — 65. Crimine — omnes ; i. e. learn from a 
single act of guilt what all of them (the Greeks) are. — 68. Cir- 



554 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

cumspexit. The spondaic termination admirably suits the' sense, 
marking as it does Sinon's cautious gaze. — 69, 70. Nunc . . . jam 
denique == now, at the present time . . . now at last, after all. — 71. 
Super. See on I. 29. — 73. Quo gemitu. See on G. I. 329. — 

74. Sanguine. Gr. 425. 3. 1). A. & S. 246. — Cretus ; sc. sit. — 

75. Quidve ferat = what (information) he brings. Gr. 525. A. & S. 
265. Memoret = (bidding) him tell. All after fart is to be taken 
as an oratio obliqua : memora quo sanguine cretus sis, etc. See on I. 
645. Quae — capto = what he has to rely on as a captive ; i. e. why 
he should not meet the captive's doom. — 77 - 104. He says his 
name is Sinon, a relation of Palamedes, whose death he resented, 
and thus incurred the enmity of Ulysses. — 77. Fuerit quodcum- 
que = whatever shall come of it, whatever the result shall be. Gr. 
473. 1. A. & S. 259, R. 1 (5). — 78. Vera = truly. It adheres to 
fatebor. — 79. Hoc primum (sc. fatebor) ; a sort of parenthesis, like 
hoc tantum, v. 690. " This to begin with." — 80. Finxit is stronger- 
than, fecit. Cf. VI. 80 ; G. II. 407. Vanum. See on I. 392. Im- 
proba. Observe the position and translate with last clause only : 
malicious as she is, she shall not go so far as to make me a liar. — 81. 
Fando. See on v. 6. Aliquod ; for alicubi or aliquo tempore = any- 
where or at any time. See on E. I. 54. — 82. Belidae = the descend- 
ant of Belus ; who is said to have been a very remote ancestor of 
Palamedes. Falamedis ; the son of Nauplius, king of Euboea. 

83. Falsa sub proditione == under a false discovery, a false infor- 
mation. The editors generally take it to mean, under a false charge 
of treason, a sense which the words will hardly bear, proditio being 
equivalent to indicium. There is no reference whatever to the pre- 
tended treason of Palamedes, though that happened to be the subject 
of the charge. The story goes thus : Agamemnon, Diomedes, and 
Ulysses, having become envious of his fame, caused a captive Phry- 
gian to write to Palamedes a letter in the name of Priam, and then 
bribed a servant of Palamedes to conceal the letter under his master's 
bed. Hereupon they accused Palamedes of treachery ; they searched 
his tent, found the letter, and caused him to be stoned to death. — 

84. Infando indicio = by an iniquitous disclosure ; referring, like 
falsa sub proditione, to the production of the false letter. Sinon pur- 
posely dwells on the horror of the transaction. — 85. Lumine ; the 
light of day or life. Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 250. 2 (1). 86. The 
apodosis of the sentence commencing at v. 81 begins here. In case 
you ever heard of Palamedes, I was his companion in arms and near 
kinsman. Illi is the emphatic word. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 
5. — 87. Pauper may be intended to excite the commiseration of 
the hearers, or, as war was a lucrative calling in Virgil's time, to ac- 
count for his being sent from his early youth (primis ab annis). In 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 555 

arma=to war. — 88. Stabat — incolumis = stood firm in his 
royal dignity. See on I. 268. Regum . . . consiliis = in the coun- 
cils of the kings ; i. e. of the Grecian leaders. See on v. 83. — 89. 
Et nos = I also. Nomen = reputation. — 91. Haud — loquor; 
i. e. you doubtless know the story. Superis — oris ; i. e. from the 
world of light and life. — 92. Afflictus = dashed down (from my 
prosperity). Tenebris = in obscurity. — 94. Me ; with ultorem. 
Tulisset = should bring it to pass. Gr. 533. 4. A. & S. 266. 2, 
R. 4. — 95. Argos ; for Graeciam. — 96. Verbis ; opposed to 
tacui. — 97. Hinc = from this time. Semper seems to confirm this 
interpretation of hinc. Labes = plague-spot, token. — 98. Terrere 
. . . spargere . . . quaerere. Gr. 545. 1. A. & S. 209, R. 5. — 99. 
Vulgum. Gr. 47. II. A. & S. 51. Quaerere — arma = began 
to seek allies as a conspirator ; nearly = quaerere arma consciorum, 
or, quaerere conscios, as Wr. gives it. Quaerere arma occurs in this 
very sense in XL 229. That Ulysses sought for allies appears from 
the introduction of Calchas, and from the anticipation of the event, 
v. 124, which argues that his designs were not entirely a secret. — 
100. Nee . . . enim. See on G. II. 104. Calchante ministro. 
See on I. 135. Calchas was the great soothsayer of the Greeks dur- 
ing the Trojan war. — 101. Autem with sed is colloquial, being pe- 
culiar to the comic writers, and is nearly =i tandem. Revolvo = 
unroll, dwell upon. — 102. Quidve moror = or why do I detain 
you? Uno ordine = in one rank, alike. — 103. Id; i. e. that I 
am a Greek, v. 78. Jamdudum = at once, instantly ; the punish- 
ment having been long since due. Ithacus = the Ithacan. See on v. 
7. Velit . . . mercentur. Gr. 485. A. & S. 261, R. 4. Magno. 
Gr. 416. A. & S. 252, R. 3. Atridae. See on I. 458. 

106. Pelasgae. See on I. 264. — 107. Prosequitur = pro- 
ceeds. — 109. Moliri See on I. 564. — 110. Fecissent. Gr. 488. 
I. and 2. A. & S. 263. I and R. Saepe = as often : referring to 
saepe, v. 108. Ponti . . . hiems = a storm at sea, the stormy state 
of the deep. — 111. Euntes ; not for ituros, but a rhetorical exaggera- 
tion. — 112. Trabibus. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. Acer- 
nis need not be pressed against abiete, v. 16, or pinea claustra, v. 258. 
See on v. 577. — 114. Eurypylum ; a hero and soothsayer who 
went to the Trojan war with forty ships. Scitantem = to consult. 
See on I. 519. — 116. Sanguine . . . et virgine caesa ; hendiadys, 
which is expressed, v. 118, by two clauses. The allusion is to the 
detention of the Grecian ships at Aulis, where Iphigenia was sacri- 
ficed. — 118. Litandum (sc. est) ; impersonal. — 120. Ima = in- 
most. The marrow was considered the seat of animal heat. — 121. 
Fata ; i. e. the oracle. See on I. 382. Parent = ordain (death). 
The omission of an ace. may be rhetorical, to produce a sense of 



556 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

horror. The clause is dependent on tremor, the shuddering surmise 
being expressed by an indirect question. — 122. Hie. See on I. 728. 
Magno . . . tumultu is said of Ulysses, not of the multitude. Cf. 
v. 128. — 123. Numina = will. Cf. I. 133. — 124. Flagitat ( = in- 
sists on knowing) is in keeping with magno tumultu. Canebant = 
were foretelling. — 125. Artificis = of the artful plotter. Taciti 
is not inconsistent with canebant. They privately warned him of his 
danger, and then quietly waited to see the result, not daring to take 
any open or active measures against Ulysses. — 126. Quinos. Gr. 
174. 2. 4). A. & S. 120. 4 {a). Tectus = covered, shut up ; i. e. 
in his tent. Some make it = cautious, with concealed purpose. — 
129. Composito — vocem = by concert (i. e. with Ulysses) he 
breaks his silence. Destinat = dooms. — 130, 131. Quae — tu- 
lere = acquiesced (lit. bore) in turning (lit. when turned) on one poor 
wretch the fate which each feared for himself. — 132. Parari = were 
preparing! Hist, infin. so called. — 133. Fruges = mola, meal. 
Vittae. Woollen fillets adorned the heads of both priests and vic- 
tims. — 134. Vincula ; the bonds with which the victim when 
brought up to the altar was fastened till the moment of striking the 
blow. Cf. v. 156. — 135. Obscurus in ulva is to be taken to- 
gether, screened by (lit. in) the sedge, explaining how he came to be 
concealed in the marsh. — 136. Darent. Gr. 522. II. A. & S. 263. 
4 (1). Si forte dedissent is, according to Wr. whom Forb. fol- 
lows, for si forte daturi essent = if perchance they intended to set 
sail. Con. rejects this, and offers an interpretation suggested by si 
forte tulisset, v. 756. viz. in the hope, or on the peradventure that 
they would have sailed ; of which of course there would be a doubt, 
as the necessary condition had not been fulfilled ; i. e. the sacrifice of 
one of their own countrymen. The inconsistency between darent and 
dedissent, the one implying that Sinon waited while they were getting 
off, and the other that he trusted to their having got off before his 
waiting was over, is hardly an objection, if indeed the confusion might 
not be said to have a dramatic propriety. — 137. Antiquam = 
pristinam. — 139. Quos . . . poenas = of whom (they will de- 
mand) punishment. Gr. 374 and 2. 2). A. &. S. 231 and R. 1. Et 
= even. — 141. Quod = wherefore. Grammatically it is the cog- 
nate ace. after oro. It is often thus used in adjurations. Cf. VI. 363. 
Conscia = who are conscious witnesses. Veri. Gr. 399 and 2. 2) 
(2). A. & S. 213 and R. 1 (3). —142. Per. The following clause is 
to be taken as the object of per : if there is any, &c. by that. A simi- 
lar construction is found at IV. 317 ; VI. 459. Si qua est, quae restat, 
appears to be a pleonasm, not unlike that in VI. 367. — 143. La- 
borum . . . animi. Gr. 406. I. A. & S. 215 (1). — 145. Lacrimis. 
Gr. 384 and II. A. & S. 223. Some prefer to consider it an abl. 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 557 

of cause. Ultro = gratuitously. — 146. Viro. Gr. 384. A. & S. 
223. Levari = to be taken away, removed. — 148. Amissos . . . 
obliviscere = let (them) go and forget (them). See on I. 69. Amitto 
is here used in its primary and earlier sense of dimitto. — 149. Eris. 
Gr. 535. 3. 2). A. & S. 267, R. 2. Vera = truly, truthfully.— 150. 
Quo = to what end ? Auctor = adviser. — 151. Quae religio = 
what was the religious object ? — 152. Arte Pelasga. Cf. v. 106. 
— 154. Aeterni ignes ; of all the heavenly bodies, as ad sidera 
merely means, to heaven. Vos et vestrum numen is pleonastic. 
— 15S. See on v. 133. — 157. Sacrata . . . jura = the rights sanc- 
tioned (by oath) : sacratwn jus being equivalent, according to Serv., 
to sacra?7ientum or jusjurandum, the military oath. Thus Sinon 
successively disclaims all former obligations as a soldier, as a friend, 
as a colleague and confidant, and as a citizen. Resolvere jura. Cf. 
IV. 27. — 159. Si qua tegunt = if they conceal any. — 160. Pro- 
missis maneas = abide by thy promises ; more commonly stare 
promissis. In is generally added ; from which it appears that the 
case is the abl. of place. — 161. Si — rependam = if I shall make 
a large return. Gr. 441 ; 470. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (2) ; 145. III. — 
162. Coepti . . . belli = confidence in the undertaking of the war, 
the confidence with which they undertook the war. See on incipiam, 
v. 13. Gr. 580. A. & S. 274, R. 5 (a). — 163. Auxiliis . . . stetit 
= stood by the aid, was kept up by the aid. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. Impius ; already impious, as having wounded Venus 
and Mars, and so not pointing forward exclusively, if at all, to the 
seizure of the Palladium. Ex quo (sc. tempore) = ever since ; cor- 
relative of ex Mo, v. 169. — 164. Sed enim. See on I. 19. Scele- 
rum inventor; like artijicis scelus, v. 125. — 165. Fat ale = fate - 
bearing ; since the destiny of Troy depended on its preservation. 
Avellere. The Palladium was fastened with chains. — 166. Pal 
ladiuni. The story of the Palladium was variously told : the main 
points, however, seem to be that its importance as one of the charms 
which rendered Troy impregnable became known to the Greeks, and 
that Diomedcs and Ulysses made their way to the citadel by a secret 
passage, and took the image, quarrelling about it on their road home. 
— 168. Virgineas. The fillets of virgins were different from those 
of matrons. — 169. The general notion is that of flowing away, as 
opposed to permanence, stetit, v. 163. See on G. I. 200. — 171. Ea 
signa= signs of these things. Tritonia. See on Ov. M. III. 127. 
Monstris = portents. — 172. Vix is sometimes, as here and in III. 
90, followed by a clause without any connecting particle, sometimes 
by a clause with que or et (v. 692), more frequently by a clause with 
quuvi. Arsere = flashed. — 173. Luminibus . . . arrectis = 
from her raised eyes ; i. e. raised in fury, just as in I. 482 the goddess 



55 8 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

keeps her eyes on the ground in sullen displeasure. — 174. Ipsa = 
of herself. — 176. Canit == announces ; i. e. as a prophetic in- 
junction. — 178. Repetant = they seek again ; referring to the Ro- 
man custom of returning from the camp to the city for fresh auspices 
in case of anything unlucky. Repetere auspicia was the common 
phrase. Argis; for Graecia. Gr. 421. II. A. & S. 254. Numen- 
que reducant (= and bring back the divine will ; i. e. an expres- 
sion or indication of the divine will) is explained by deos parant com- 
ites, v. 181, to refer to the same thing as omina repetant, the bringing 
back of fresh auspices from Greece, not to the bringing back of the 
Palladium, which it is evident from the context they had not carried 
to Greece. For this meaning of numen, cf. vv. 123, 336 ; III. 363 ; 
VII. 119 (where it might be exchanged for omen) ; IX. 661 ; XI. 232. 
— 179. Avexere ; from Greece to Troy, at the beginning of the ex- 
pedition. The mode would more regularly have been the subj., but 
Virg. has returned to the oratio recta. 180. Quod = inasmuch as, 
that. — 181. Arma — comites. See on v. 178. — 182. Impro- 
visi aderunt. Serv. well says : Verum metum falso metu abigit, ut dum 
reversuros timent non timeant ne non abierint. — 183. Pro Palladio 
. . . pro numine laeso ; not in exchange for the violated statue, but 
to make amends for the offence to the divinity. See on I. 8. Moniti ; 
by Calchas. — 184. Piaret. Gr. 50b. A. & S. 264. 5. —185. Im- 
mensam; with attollere, to rear in vast bulk. — 186. Roboribus; 
with attollere. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. See on v. 112. 
Coelo. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. — 187. Portis. Gr. 
414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3, or 255. 2. Aut connects duci with 
recipi, as expressing mere varieties of detail, while both are coupled 
with tueri by net*, to express two different points of view. — 188. 
Antiqua sub religione ; the shelter of the worship of Pallas, as 
securing protection to the worshippers. So when the city is to be 
taken, the gods depart, v. 351. — 189. Violasset. Gr. 533. 4. 
A. &. S. 266. 2, R. 4. Dona. See on v. 31. — 190. Prius ; i. e. ere 
it reaches you. Omen ; the sign for, the thing signified ; i. e. ruin. 
Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. — 191. Convertant. Gr. 488 and I. 
A. &. S. 260, R. 6. Imperio. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. Futurum. 
Gr. 530 and I. A. & S. 266. 2. — 192. Ascendisset. See on vio- 
lasset, v. 189. — 193. Ultro = voluntarily ; i. e. acting not merely 
on the defensive, but offensive. Pelopea ad moenia ; for ad Grae- 
ciam : Pelops being the grandfather of Agamemnon and Menelaus. 
The peninsula of Peloponnesus (island of Pelops) was named for him. 
— 194. Venturam. See on futurum, v. 191. Ea fata; i. e. the 
magnum exitium of v. 190. Manere nepotes. Cf. III. 505. — 196. 
Capti ; sc. sumus. — 197. Tydides. Cf. I. 96. Larissaeus ; from 
Larissa, a city of Thessaly, the country of Achilles. — 199. Hie. 




THE AENEID. BOOK II. 559 

See on I. 728. Aliud. Gr. 441. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (2). —200. 
Improvida refers generally to the blindness of the Trojans, not to 
their inability to foresee this portent, nor proleptically to its effect in 
making them rush on their doom. Cf. v. 54. Pectora. See on I. 
567. — 201. Ductus. Cf. our "drawn," or "drafted." See on v. 
41. — 202. Sollemnes ... ad aras; i. e. the altars where the cus- 
tomary sacrifices took place. — 203. Per alta; with incumbunt (== 
swim), the notion of movement being supplied from the context. — 
206. Arrecta = raised. — 208. Legit = sweeps, skims. Volu- 
mine. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 209. Salo. Gr. 
414 and 2. A. & S. 248. Arva ; the shore. — 210. Oculos. See 
on I. 228. — 212. Visu may be taken with diffngimus or exsangues. 
It is the cause of both. Cf. v. 382. Agmine certo = in a direct 
course. — 213. Primum ; opposed to post, v. 216. — 215. Depas- 
citur = devours. — 216. Auxilio. Gr. 390. 2. A. & S. 227, R. 2. 
Cf. I. 22. — 118. Medium ; sc. eum. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 
17. Collo, 384. 1. A. & S. 249. I. R. 3. Circum . . . dati ; tmesis. 

— 219. Terga. See on I. 228. Capite et cervicibus ; i. e. of 
the serpents. Gr. 418 and 1. A. & S. 256, R. 16 and (3). —220. 
Simul . . . simul. See on I. 631. — 221. Atro veneno. See on 
G. II. 130. — 223. Quales mugitus (sc. toll it) = (such) bellowings 
as a bull raises. See on I. 316, 430. — 224. Incertam = ill-aimed. 

— 225. Delubra ad summa is explained by what follows, saevaeque 
petunt Tritonidis arcem, the temple of Minerva being at the top of 
the arx, v. 166. — 226. Effugiunt with lapsu = elabiintur. Saevae 
= unpropitious ; i. e. to the Trojans. Cf. I. 479. — 227. Deae. There 
seems to have been a statue of Pallas in the arx besides the Palla- 
dium, or possibly one was introduced in its place. 228. Cunctis. 
Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 229. Scelus ; sceleris poenam. 
Merentem ; emphatic. — 231. Laeserit . . . intorserit. Gr. 519. 
A. & S. 264. 8 (1). — 232. Sedes (sc. deae) ; i. e. templnm. — 233. 
Conclamant. Translate the con. — 234. Moenia — urbis = we 
lay open the buildings of the city ; i. e. the city itself as distinguished 
from the wall. Moenia appears to be the buildings within the murus 
(cf. VI. 549), so that when a breach was made in the mums (probably 
close to the Scaean gate so as to enlarge it), the moenia would be laid 
open. — 235. Accingo ; intransitive. Virg. has nowhere else used 
it so. Rotarum . . . lapsus ; poetically for rotas. — 236. Collo 
intendunt = stretch to the neck. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 237. 
Scandit . . . muros. Cf. VI. 515. — 238. Armis ; for armatis, as 
in I. 506. — 239. Sacra ; sc. carmina. — 240. Minans. See on 
I. 162. — 242. Dardanidum. Gr. 42. 3. 3). A. & S. 43. 2. Portae. 
See on v. 234. — 243. Substitit ; i. e. as they were pulling it over 
the breach. Utero. Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 245. 



560 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

Monstrum ; of anything portentous, as of Polyphemus, III. 658. 
See also on G. I. 185. Infelix = inauspicious. — 246. Etiam ; i. e. 
besides our other warnings. Fatis . . . futuris = for our impending 
doom ; i. e. for a warning of the future. This is the common inter- 
pretation ; but fatis futuris may be an abl. of manner = in future 
fates ; i. e. in predictions of our future doom. Cassandra ; a daugh- 
ter of Priam, who obtained from Apollo the gift of prophecy, but 
with the condition that her predictions should never be believed by 
the Trojans. — 247. Dei ; i. e. Apollo. Credita agrees with era. 
This is evident from the emphatic position of ora ; and besides the 
expression thus taken is much more poetical. — 248. Quibus — dies 
= though that day was our last (we deck, etc.). Gr. 515. II. ; 516. 4. 
A. & S. 264. 2. — 249. Velamus ; for coronamus, III. 405 ; V. 72, 
etc., the festoons being thick and long, so as to cover the altar. 

250. Ruit = comes up. Cf. VI. 539. — 251. The spondees ex- 
press solemnity. Gr. 672. 2. A. & S. 310. 2. — 252. Fusi. See on 
I. 214. — 254. Phalanx = the army. Instructis = having been 
drawn up in order. Ibat. The fleet was on its way when the royal 
ship hoisted the signal to Sinon. — 255. Arnica ; i. e. to the Greeks. 
It was a still moonlight night. There is a tradition that Troy was 
taken at the time of full moon. — 256. Nota ; because they had 
already been encamped there ten years. Regia puppis ; i. e. 
Agamemnon's. — 257. Extulerat. The pluperf. in this case has 
the same relation to the imperf. that the perf. of instantaneous action 
has to the present. See on G. I. 330. The fleet was under way, and 
instantly, without any appreciable lapse of time, the royal ship had 
raised the signal. Gr. 508. A. & S. 259, R. 1 (3). Translate, im- 
mediately hoisted. Iniquis = hostile ; i. e. to the Trojans. — 259. 
Laxat = sets free . . . and opens : a zeugma and a hysteron-pro- 
teron. Gr. 704. \. 2 and IV. 2. A. & S. 323. 1 (2) (a) and 4 (2). — 
260. Robore. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 {b). — 261. Duces; 
as coming out first. — 262. Demissum — funem refers to all men- 
tioned, like oblati per lunam, v. 340. — 263. Pelides = the grandson 
of Peleus ; also called Pyrrhus, v. 469. Primus. The meaning of 
this word has not been satisfactorily settled ; some taking it = inter 
primos, and others understanding it to mean that he was the first to 
issue from the horse. The first view is weak, and the last seems 
hardly tenable, considering the position of the word. — 264. Doll. 
See on insidias, v. 36. — 266. Portis. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 
and 3, or 285. 2. Omnes . . . socios ; those who have landed from 
the ships. — 267. Agmina — jungunt =jungunt (sibi) agmina 
conscia (doli). — 269. Bono ; with serpit. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. Gratissima answers to prima in the former clause ; i. e. 
sweetest because first and deepest. Cf. I. 470. — 272. Raptatus. 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 56 1 

Cf. I. 483. — 273. Lora. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 274. Mihi. 

Gr. 389. 2. 2). A. & S. 228. 3. Qualis erat = how he looked ! — 
275. Redit. The present makes the remembrance more vivid. 
Exuvias. Gr. 374. 7. A. & S. 234. I. R. 1 (a). Hector had slain 
and spoiled Patroclus, who wore the armor of Achilles. Achilli. 
See on I. 30. — 276. Jaculatus ; coupled with redit, like indutus. 
Puppibus=into the ships (drawn up on the shore). — 278. Gerens ; 
appropriately of an assumed appearance, as in I. 315. See note. — 
279. Ultro ; because not previously addressed. See on vv. 145, 
193. Cf. IV. 304 ; VI. 499. Flens ; with ipse. I too wept. — 281. 
Lux = defence, safety. Virgil makes Aeneas forget not only the 
circumstances, but the fact of Hector's death. — 283. Exspectate ; 
the voc. by attraction for the nom. Ut ; with adspicimus, not with 
defessi. It is = ut libenter = how gladly ! — 284. Hominum la- 
bores ; in fight. Cf. urbis labores, v. 11. — 285. Indigna = un- 
seemly. Ille nihil ; sc. respondet. — 287. Moratur ; as in V. 400. 
Nor does he regard my vain inquiries. — 290. Muros ; emphatic. 
Alto a culmine = from her lofty position ; i. e. as a state. — 291. 
Sat — datum ; i. e. the claims of your country and king are dis- 
charged. Dextra = by strength of hand ; lit. by the right hand. — 
294. Comites. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. His = for these. Cf. III. 
159. Moenia; for urbem, as often. 296. Vittas Vestamque; 
i. e. Vestam vittatam, a. small image of Vesta bound with fillets. It is 
evident that Virg. means to represent the apparition of Hector as 
actually bringing out the gods, not merely as appearing to do so. — 
297. Aeternum ; because the fires of Vesta were never allowed to 
go out. — 298. Diverso = in different quarters; i. e. as the disas- 
ter spread through the town. Luctu = by cries of woe. — 299. 
Secreta = apart ; i. e. from others. Seer eta and obtecta both go 
with recessit as predicates. — 301. Armorum . . . horror = the 
alarm of battle. — 302. Summi — supero = I ascend the slope 
of the highest part of the roof. Fastigia teeti = tectum fastigatum, a 
sloping roof. Adscensu supero = adscendo. See on v. 226. — 303. 
Adsto. See on I. 152. — 304- 308. The comparison is between 
Aeneas listening to the sound of battle from the roof of his house, 
and a shepherd hearing the roaring of a conflagration or a torrent 
from the top of a crag ; so that it seems best to make stupet the 
apodosis to veluti quum. See on I. 148. — 304. Furentibus aus- 
tris = while the winds are raging. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 305. 
Incidit flamma ; perhaps of a casual spark, like excidit ignis, G. II. 
303. Flumine ; with rapidus. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. 
— 307. Inscius ; i. e. not knowing what to make of it. — 308. 
Accipiens (sc. auribus) = audiens. — 309. Fides = the truth. 
Manifesto, fides is used by Livy, VI. 13, for a palpable demonstration. 
36 



562 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

The thing demonstrated is the truth of the vision and its revelations. 
But some refer it ironically to Sinon. — 310. Deiphobi ; a son of 
Priam and Hecuba. Cf. VI. 495 foil. Dedit . . . ruinam = fell in. 
— 311. Vulcano. See on G. I. 295. Proximus ; i. e. next to 
the house of Deiphobus. — 312. Ucalegon ; one of Priam's coun- 
sellors. The man is put for his house, as Apollo for his temple, III. 
275. Sigea ; so called from Sigeum, a promontory of Troas, situ- 
ated at the point where the Hellespont widens out into the Aegean. 
Lata has the force of late. — 314. Armis ; sc. capiendis. Aeneas 
was rushing into battle without a sufficiently distinct notion what 
object to aim at. — 315. Bello = a^ bellum. Gr. 384 and II. A. 
& S. 223. In arcem. The citadel as a rallying-point is his first 
thought. See on v. 322. — 317. Pulchrumque mori ; sc. esse. 
Gr. 545 ; 549. 2. A. & S. 239 ; 269, R. 3. — 319. Othryades = 
son of Othrys. Arcis Phoebique ; of Apollo in the citadel, where 
there seem to have been chapels for several of the gods. — 320. 
Sacra deosque. Cf. v. 293. Victos. See on I. 68. — 321. Ipse 
maim, words which are frequently found together in Virg. seem 
always intended to call attention to the agent, sometimes with direct 
reference to others, sometimes merely as coming forward prominently, 
e. g. where the act is one requiring exertion. Trahit . . . deos . . . 
nepotem ; a zeugma. Trahit aptly expresses the difficulty experi- 
enced by the child in endeavoring to keep up with his grandfather. 
Limina ; the door of Aeneas, who is just rushing out when he is 
met by Panthus on the threshold, and sallies forth accordingly, v. 
336, after their conversation. Cursu . . . tendit = currit. See on 
vv. 226, 303. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 322. Quo — 
Loco = in what condition is the public safety ? Quam — arcem. 
Arx is here used in its proper sense, a citadel, or point of defence, 
though quam seems to show that the word is not meant to be re- 
stricted to Pergamus. See on I. 1. Aeneas sees Panthus hurrying 
away from the citadel with his gods and his grandson, and so naturally 
asks, " What citadel are we occupying ? " or " have we occupied ? " 
{prendimus . may be either pres. or perf.) suspecting already that 
Pergamus is no longer tenable. Henry well remarks that Panthus 
answers in effect, " We have no citadel anywhere to defend," and 
that Aeneas, hearing this, rushes out with no definite object in the 
direction of the shouting. Panthu. Gr. 46. 3. 5). A. & S. 54. 5. 
■ — 325. Dardaniae; probably a dat.,like Libyae in I. 22. Fuimus. 
Gr. 471. 1. A. & S. 259, R. 1 (2) (a). — 326. Ferus — trains, cru- 
delis. Argos; for Graeciam. Gr. 379. A. & S. 237. — 330. In- 
sultans ; expressive of joy and insolence. Portis. Gr. 414 and 4. 
A. & S. 247 and 3, or 255. 2. Alii . . . alii = some . . . others. — 
332. Angusta viarum. See on I. 422. — 333. Oppositi = op- 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 563 

posing themselves ; i. e. to the Trojans coming and trying to escape. 
Stat refer-s to the sword firmly grasped in the hand, so as to present 
the point to the enemy. Mucrone. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 
and 2. — 334. Primi = at the entrance ; i. e. those first met on 
entering the gates. — 335. Caeco Marte = in the dark encounter. 
Caeco Marte might be said of a night encounter, though it happened 
to be moonlight. — 336. Numine divum = by the will of the gods ; 
i. e. as intimated by the words of Panthus. A close connection is to 
be supposed between talibus dictis and numine divitm. Cf. such 
passages as v. 195 and III. 172. The meaning seems to be that 
Aeneas having heard from Panthus that the gods had declared against 
Troy, and that all hope of rallying his countrymen was over, rushed 
desperately forth. This accords with the view taken in v. 322. — 
337. Erinys; not the Fury within, but the Fury without, the demon 
of battle. See on G. I. 278. — 338. Aethera. See on G. I. 406. 

— 340. Oblati. See on v. 262. The names are fictitious. — 341. 
Agglomerant ; sc. se from addunt. See on I. 440. Nostro. Gr. 
446. 2. A. & S. 209, R. 7 (b). — 342. Mygdonides. Mygdon was 
a king of Phrygia. — 343. Insano ; because it hurried him to his 
ruin. — 344. Gener ; with auxilium ferebat: as a son-in-law. — 345. 
Qui non . . . audierit = because he did not heed. Cassandra ad- 
vised him in vain to retire from the war. He was slain by Peneleus, 
v. 425. Gr. 519. A. & S. 264. 8 (1).— 347. Confertos = formed 
into a band; i. e. as Aeneas wished, glomerare mamcm bello, v. 315. 
Audere in = to have courage sufficient for. — 348. Super = 
thereupon ; i. e. quia jam audebant. His ; sc. dictis. Fortissima 
. . . pectora. See on E. IX. 9. Frustra; because it is now too 
late for valor to avail anything. — 349. Audentem; sc. me. Ex- 
trema = extreme perils, death. Cupido ; sc. est. — 350. Sequi. 
See on v. 10. — 352. Quibus . . . steterat. See on v. 163. — 353. 
Incensae is the emphatic word, as in v. 327. Moriamur et ru- 
amus is not exactly a case of hysteron-proteron. The first thing 
which Aeneas had to do was to persuade his comrades to die ; the 
next to tell them how to do it. — 354. Salus. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. 

— 356. Raptores = prowling. A. & S. 205, R. 11. — 357. Cae- 
cos; i. e. to danger. — 359. Mediae . . . urbis. They apparently 
make for the arx as the seat of danger. Cf. v. 240. — 360. N02 
atra. It is not meant that the night was dark as compared with 
other nights ; the epithet is merely one of night as distinguished from 
day : so that there is no inconsistency between vv. 255, 340, and 360, 
397, 420, 621. — 361. Fando explicet. Cf. IV. 333. — 362. 
Lacrimis. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. — 364. Inertia; 
i. e. imbellia, the bodies of the weak and helpless. Cf. IV. 158. — 
366. Sanguine. Gr. 414 and 3. A. 247 and 2. — 368. Crudelia 



564 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

luctus = relentless agony. For an example of luctus denoting the 
agony of battle, cf. v. 298. Ubique . . . ubique . . . plurima are 
predicates, plurima being a repetition of ubique under a different 
form. — 369. Imago — sight. Cf. VI. 405. — 371. Androgeos ; 
a Grecian hero, not to be confounded with the son of the Cretan king 
Minos, VI. 20. Gr. 46. A. & S. 54.-372. Ultro. See on v. 279. 

— 373. Quae tarn sera. See on G. II. 315. — 375. Vos. Gr. 
446. A. & S. 209, R. 1 (b). — 376. Dabantur. Mark the tense. 
No satisfactory answer was being given, such as Androgeas expected 
to receive at once. — 377. Sensit delapsus is a Grecism. Gr. 547 
and I. A. & S. 271, N. 5. — 378. Retro . . . repressit. See on 
G. I. 200. — 379. Aspris. Gr. 703. 2. A. & S. 322. 4 — 380. 
Humi. Gr. 424. 2. A. & S. 221, R. 3. Nitens ; advancing with 
effort, because of the briers. — 381. Iras ; i. e. caput iratum. Col- 
la. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 382. Visu. See on v. 212. 
Abibat = was beginning to retreat. — 383. Circumfundimur ; sc. 
its. Cf. IV. 635. The use of the passive in a middle (or reflexive) 
sense, is common. Cf. vv. 393, 401, etc. Armis. Gr. 414 and 3. 
A. & S. 247 and 2. — 386. Successu — animis. Gr. 414 and 2. 
A. & S. 247 and 1. — 387. Prima seems to be explained by privw 
labori, v. 385, though it might refer adverbially to monstrat iter. — 
390. Dolus — requirat. Who, having to deal with an enemy, 
would draw distinctions between stratagem and hard fighting? In 
hoste. Cf. v. 541. Requirat = rogat, as in v. 506. — 391. De- 
inde ; after a participle, like turn, V. 382. Clipei insigne = clipeum : 
lit. device of the shield. Gr. 374. 7. A. & S. 234, R. 1 (a). — 393. 
Induitur. See on v. 383. — 394. Ipse = etiam. — 396. Haud 

— nostro = under a protection not our own : lit. under a god not 
our own : referring to the Grecian armor which they had assumed. 
Virg. meant to say, probably, either that the Grecian arms actually 
carried with them the favor of the Grecian deities, or to express in 
theological language the advantage derived from the disguise. It 
seems clear from the context that he did not mean to introduce at this 
point in the narrative anything of an unfavorable character, as this 
would not only interfere with the feeling of triumph, but also spoil 
the effect of the next paragraph, which at v. 402 is ushered in with a 
sudden change of tone. The common explanation therefore, the gods 
being against us, can hardly be correct. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 
247 and 2. — 397. Caecam . . . noctem. See on vv. 335, 360. — 
399. Cursu . . . petunt. See on v. 321. — 400. Fida; because their 
fleet was there. — 401. Conduntur. See on v. 383. — 402. Invitis 
. . . fidere divis = should trust the gods against their will ; i. e. a 
man may not rely on the gods when they have declared against him. 
Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. Some make invitis divis an abl. abs. = 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 565 

when the gods are against him, taking fidere absolutely. — 404. Tern- 
plo; the temple of Minerva in the citadel. See on v. 359 and I. 41. 

— 407. Mente. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257. Coroebus. See vv. 341 
foil, and notes. —408. Periturus. Gr. 578. V. A. & S. 274, R. 6 {a). 

— 409. Densis . . . armis ; i. e. with closed ranks. Gr. 414 and 3. 
A. & S. 247 and 2. Cf. 383. — 410. Primum answers to tztm, v. 413, 
and to etiam, v. 420. This was the beginning of our reverses. De- 
lubri ; i. e. of Minerva. — 411. Miserrima = most pitiable. — 412. 
Err ore jubarum; L e. the mistake arising from the crests. — 
413. Gemitu ; i. e. of indignation. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 
and 2. Ereptae virginis = at the rescue of the maiden ; i. e. Cas- 
sandra. Gr. 580. A. & S. 274, R. 5 {a). —414. Undique; with 
collecti: they rally from all sides, and fall on us. Acerrimus; be- 
cause of the loss of his prize. — 415. Dolopum. See on v. 7. — 
416. Adversi; predicate with confligunt. Turbine. Gr. 430. 
A. & S. 257. — 418. Equis. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. 
Cf. Hor. C. IV. 4. 44. Saevitque tridenti Cf. I. 138. — 419. 
Nereus. See on Ov. M. I. 187. Fundo. Cf. I. 84, 125. — 420. 
Obscura nocte. See on v. 360. — 421. Insidiis = by the strat- 
agem. Cf. v. 387 foil. Urbe. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 
422. Primi = the foremost. Mentita = lying, counterfeiting : not 
passive, counterfeit, as some take it ; for the weapons were actually 
Greek, and so were not counterfeited. It belongs to dipeos as well as 
to tela. — 423. Ora — signant = they observe (our) speech differing 
in accent (from theirs). Sono. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 425. 
Penelei; an imaginary character. Divae. Minerva is called in 
XI. 483, Armipotens praeses belli. — 426. Unus = the very. See on 
I. 15. — 427. Aequi. Gr. 399 and 2. 1). A. & S. 213 and R. 1 (2). 

— 428. Visum ; of the decrees of the gods, III. 2. Not that the 
gods did not think him just, but that they did not deal with him as 
they might have been expected to deal with a just man. — 429. Fan- 
tliu. See on v. 322. — 430. Infula. See on v. 221. — 431. Flam- 
ma — meorum is parallel to Iliaci cineres, as the flames of Troy 
were the funeral flames of Aeneas's countrymen and friends. — 433. 
Vitavisse. Gr. 545. 2. 1). A. & S. 239, R. 2. Vices = hand-to- 
hand encounters. Fata fuissent. See on v. 54. — 434. Caderem. 
Gr. 495. 2. 1). A. & S. 273. 2. Meruisse manu. The object of 
meruisse is nt caderem. Manu = pitpiando. Inde ; probably of 
time, though it might denote place. — 435. Iphitus — mecum is 
in apposition with the subject of divellimur. We are forced away 
from the scene of action, Iphitus, Pelias, and I. Quorum; a part 
gen. limiting Iphitus and Pelias. Aevo . . . vulnere. Gr. 414 and 2. 
A. & S. 247 and 1. — 436. See on Achilli, I. 30. — 437. Vocati ; 
not a finite verb, but a participle agreeing with the subject of diveHi- 



566 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

mur. It was the battle-cry at Priam's palace that forced Aeneas and 
his comrades away from the scene where the others met their death. 
— 438. Pugnam ; with cernimus. Cetera . . . bella ; i. e. other 
conflicts that were going on in the town. — 439. Forent. Gr. 506. 
A. & S. 263. 2(1). — 440. Sic answers to ceu, and goes with ruentes 
and obsessum as well as with indomitum. Martem = the conflict ; 
as in v. 335. Que . . . que = both . . . and. Ad tecta = for the 
roof. — 441. Acta testudine = by a testudo (of shields) which had 
been formed and advanced (against it). Limen = the gate. Two 
struggles were going on ( Danaosque — ruentes . . . obsessumque — li- 
men) between the assailants and defenders, one about scaling the 
walls of the palace (vv. 442 - 444), the other about forcing an entrance 
through the doors (vv. 449, 450). The progress of the former is de- 
scribed vv. 452 - 468, that of the latter vv. 469 foil. — 442. Haerent 
parietibus = hang on the wails. Gr. 422. 1 ; 669. II. 3. A. & S. 
254, R. 3; 306. 1 (3). — 443. Gradibus; i. e. of the ladders. Gr. 
414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. Clipeos . . . objiciunt describes the 
testudo. — 445. Tecta = covered. — 446. His ; with telis ; i. e. the tiles 
and other parts of the roof torn up. Quando. Cf. I. 261. Ultima 
= the end ; i. e. that the end has come. — 447. Extrema in 
morte = in the last death-struggle. — 448. Decora alta. Cf. I. 
429. — 449. Imas ; opposed to what was going on upon the roof. 
The defenders of the doors seem to have stood within, v. 485. — 451. 
Animi; referring to Aeneas and his two companions. His first 
thought had been to make for the citadel (v. 315) ; he had afterwards 
become more desperate (vv. 336 foil.) ; now he seems to return to the 
hope of making a regular defence. 

453. Limen. Virg. characterizes this secret postern gate in four 
ways : first simply as limen, then bringing in the notion of secrecy in 
caecae fores, then mpervius usus, etc., explaining the object of this sec- 
ond entry, and lastly in postes relicti a tergo giving the situation of the 
door, at the back of the building. Pervius usus = thoroughfare, 
free communication. — 454. Tectorum — Priami = connecting the 
apartments of Priam's palace with each other. — 455. Infelix ; 
probably on account of her widowhood. She was the widow and 
Astyanax the son of Hector. — 456. Saepius = quite often. — 457. 
Soceros ; Priam and Hecuba. So patres, v. 579, stands for parentes. 
Puerum . . . trahebat. See on v. 321. — 458. Evado ; of mount- 
ing a height, IV. 685. — 460. Turrim. Gr. 85. A. & S. 79. 3. In 
praecipiti = on the extreme edge (of the roof). — Summis . . . 
tectis ; i. e. the roof of the tower, not of the palace. Gr. 414 and 3. 
A. & S. 247 and 2. See on III. 134. — 463. Ferro ; i. e. with iron 
implements as levers. Summa . . . tabulata = the surface floor- 
ings ; i. e. at the base of the tower ; and called summa merely as be- 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 567 

ing on the roof of the palace. Labantes = yielding, weak. — 464. 
Altds is generally taken = high ; but it may equally well mean deep, 
the tower being overthrown from the bottom. Sedibus will then be 
the foundation. — 465, 466. Mark the dactyls, producing acceler- 
ation of movement. — 469. Vestibulum — limine. Cf. VI. 273. 
Pyrrhus, See on v. 263. — 470. Exsultat = leaps to and fro. — 
471. Qualis ubi . . . coluber = as a snake when he. In lucem ; 
with convolvit. Virg. is fond of throwing in a word at the beginning 
of a simile to indicate, as it were, the main point and apply generally 
to what follows. Cf. I. 148, Ac veluti magno in populo ; VI. 707, Ac 
vehcti in pratis. Mala = hurtful, poisonous. Henry quotes Pliny 
to show that the ancients thought the serpent was poisonless during 
the winter, and acquired its venom from the food it ate on reviving in 
spring. — 472. Sub terra contrasts with in lucem. — 475. Arduus 
— erectus. Linguis. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. Ore. Gr. 
422 and 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 476. Ingens = gigantic. Periphas; 
mentioned in Homer as the bravest of the Aetolians. — 477. Ar- 
miger. It is not necessary to suppose with Serv. that Automedon 
had changed his function and become the armor-bearer of Pyrrhus. 
He may have been both. See on VI. 485. Scyria pubes = the 
young men of Scyros. Pyrrhus had come from Scyros (now Skyro), 
one of the Cyclades islands, and the kingdom of his maternal grand- 
father Lycomedes. — 478. Tecto = the roof. Pyrrhus's comrades 
were attempting to scale the walls, while Pyrrhus himself is battering 
down the door. — 480. Limina are the doors, as dura shows. The 
presents, perrumpit and vellit, describing the general effect of the 
blows, a process still going on, contrast with cavavit and dedit, which 
express a single completed act. — 481. Aeratos . . . robora. Ob- 
serve the effect of these words, placed each in the emphatic position 
at the commencement of the verse, and separated from the sequel by 
a pause : tears them down although plated with bronze ; scooped out 
an opening in the door although made .of the hardest wood. — 482. 
Ore. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 484. Veterum . . . regum 
adds to the pathos. The august privacy which had been preserved 
inviolate for generations is broken all at once. Armatos ; those al- 
ready mentioned, w. 449, 450. — 487. Cavae ; referring doubtless 
to the sound (see on v. 53), and also to the cavaedium, or atrium, which 
was a covered court surrounding the impluvium, or uncovered court 
in the centre of a Roman house. — 490. Oscula figunt. The 
kisses are farewell kisses. Cf. IV. 659. — 491. Vi patria = with 
his father's violence. — 492. Custodes are the armati of v. 485. 
Sufferre ; sc. vim from the preceding vi. Ariete. See on abiete, 
v. 16. Crebro ; i. e. with frequent strokes of the ram. — 494. 
Rumpunt aditus. The ace. after rumpere often expresses not 



568 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

what is burst, but what is produced by bursting. So rumpere vocem, 
v. 129. — 495. Milite complent. See on v. 20; I. 564. — 496. 
Non sic indicates that the illustration is an inadequate one. — 497. 
Exiit. See on G. I. 116. — 498. Cumulo. See on I. 105. Cam- 
pos — trahit Cf. G. I. 482. — 500. In limine goes with Neopto- 
lemum, as well as with Atridas, but furentem caede had better be con- 
fined to the former. — 501. Centum nurus ; meaning, probably, both 
the daughters-in-law and the daughters of Hecuba, of whom she had 
fifty each. Cf. v. 503. Per = among. — 504. Postes. For apposi- 
tion of a part to the whole, see on E. IX. 9. Auro spoliisque. 
Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 505. Procubuere probably 
applies only to postes. Tenent seems to refer to thalamos. It is 
commonly rendered, however, occupy the places. Cf. v. 757. 

506. Requiras. See on v. 390. Cf. G. II. 288. Gr. 485. A. & S. 
260, R. 4. — 507. Casum. See on I. 623. — 508. Medium in 
penetralibus ; like mediis in penetralibus, v. 665. Cf. I. 348. — 510. 
Humeris. Gr. 384. 1. A. & S. 249, R. 3. Fernim. Gr. 374. 7. 
A. & S. 234, R. 1. — 511. See on periturus, v. 408. — 512. Aedibus 
in mediis ; i. e. in the impluvium. See on cavae, v. 487. Axe == 
vault. — 514. Complexa = embracing ; i. e. having embraced and 
still continuing to do so. — 516. Praecipites = driven headlong 
from the sky. — 517. Amplexae; like complexa, v. 514. — 519. 
Mens tarn dira = purpose so monstrous, desperate. — 520. Cingi. 
Gr. 545. 2. 2). A: & S. 239, R. 1. For the middle sense of cingi 
see on v. 383. — 521. Tali — istis ; referring not to Priam (such de- 
fenders as you are), but to telis (we have not now to look to arms, but 
to altars and prayers), as the words which follow (non — Hector, with 
which compare vv. 291, 292) are sufficient to show. For defensoribus 
applied to an inanimate object see Caes. B. G. IV. 17. — 522. Non ; 
sc. egeret from preceding eget for afforet. — 523. Tandem. If you 
have taken the false step of arming yourself, be persuaded at last, 
while there is yet time. Concede = yield and come. — 526. Pyr- 
rhi de caede = from death by Pyrrhus ; like vulnere Ulixi, v. 436. 
He had escaped being killed on the spot, though with a mortal 
wound. — 427. Per — hostes; with elapsus. — 528. Porticibus — 
lustrat. Polites runs through different parts of the house, now wind- 
ing through the cloisters (porticibus), now traversing the atrium, 
round which the cloisters ran. — 529. Infesto vulnere = with a 
deadly aim. — 530. Jam jamque = now, even now, adds greatly 
to the vividness of the description. — 533. Quamquam — tenetur ; 
i. e. though death was all about him. — 534. Pepercit. See on G. 
II. 339. — 535. At is the regular particle in imprecations, ejacula- 
tions, etc. — 336. Pietas ■= commiseration, justice. This is the 
reciprocal of its ordinary sense. See on I. 10. So V. 688 ; IV. 382. 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 569 

Curet. Gr. 501, I. A. & S. 264- 6. — 537. Grates = requital. — 
538. Me ceraere. Facio with an ace. with the infin. in the signifi- 
cation to cause, is poetical. — 540. Saturn — mentiris. Priam 
means no more than that his nature belies his lineage, as Dido of 
Aeneas, IV. 365. Quo. Gr. 425. 3. 1). A. & S. 246. —541. In = 
in the case of. Cf. v. 390. Jura — erubuit = he respected the 
rights and confidence of a suppliant. Fidem stipplicis seems to in- 
clude the confidence reposed by a suppliant and the return which it 
claims. — 543. Hectoreum ; for Hectoris. Gr. 541. 5. A. & S. 211, 
R. 4 {a). — 544. Sine ictu = without inflicting a wound. — 545. 
Repulsum ; sc. est. — 546. Summo . . . umbone = from the top of 
the boss. — 547. Referes — ibis. Gr. 535. 3. 2). A. & S. 267, R. 2. 
Nuntius. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. — 549. Degenerem — narrare, 
like reduces socios nuntio, I. 390. There is in degenerem a sarcastic 
allusion to v. 540. Memento (= don't forget) serves to point the 
sarcasm. — 550. Trementem ; i. e. not with fear, but with age. 
Cf. v. 509.— 553. Lateri; for in latus. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. 
IV. R. 2.-554. Finis. Gr. 106. 1. A. & S. 63. 1 (2). —555. 
Sorte = according to his destiny. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 
and 1. Tulit ; of fate. See on E. V. 34. — 556. Populis terris- 
que ; with superbum. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 557. 
Asiae ; i. e. the countries in the western part of Asia Minor. Cf. 
III. 1. Jacet. The body was exposed unburied, and so Aeneas 
speaks of it as if it were still lying there. See on VI. 149. Trun- 
cus . . . caput . . . corpus ; partitive apposition. See on E. IX. 9. 

— 559. Me. Gr. 371. 4. 2). A. & S. 233.— 560. Subiit; sc. 
animum. — 562. Creusa; the daughter of Priam and wife of Aeneas. 

— 563. Direpta; not as a fact, like the desolation of Creusa, but as 
a probability. Casus Iuli ; i. e. quid Iulo accidere posset. — 564. 
Respicio. Let it be borne in mind that Aeneas is on the roof, and 
that he has been looking down into the impluvium of Priam's palace, 
completely absorbed in the scene transacting there. He now with- 
draws his eyes (respicio) from this scene, and looking about finds him- 
self alone. Copia= force. In this sense, commonly plural. — 566. 
Ignibus — dedere ; i. e. they had dropped in mere weariness into 
the flames from the palace roof, where they were standing with Aeneas. 

— 567-588. These verses are enclosed in brackets because, like 
the four lines prefixed to the Aeneid, their genuineness is questioned, 
and because they seem to be inconsistent with VI. 510 foil. — 567. 
Jamque adeo is Virgilian,.V. 268, 864, etc., adeo strengthening jam 
(see on E. IV. 11). Super unus eram ; tmesis. Limina Ves- 
tae. The temple of Vesta, like that of Pallas, appears to have been 
in the arx. — 569. Tyndarida = the daughter of Tyndareus ; i. e. 
Helen. She was really the step-daughter of Tyndareus, being the 



57° NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

daughter of Leda, the wife of Tyndareus, by Jupiter. See on I. 650. 
— 570. Erranti. Heyne supposes that Aeneas has let himself down 
to the ground and is ranging over the palace ; but it may be ques- 
tioned whether he really descends till v. 632. — 571. Eversa. Gr. 
580. A. & S. 274, R. 5 (a). — 573. Erinys. See on G. I. 278. — 
574. Invisa = hated. This seems better (Cf. v. 601) than unseen, 
as some take it. It is however to be joined as predicate with sedebat: 
sat crouching, like a hated thing. — 575. Exarsere — ammo ; i. e. 
animus ira exarsit. Subit. See on v. 360. Ira = the angry im- 
pulse, resolve. — 576. Ulcisci . . . sumere. See on amor, v. 10. 
Sceleratas . . . poenas = the penalty of her guilt. — Conjugium ; 
for conjugem. Patres ; for pare?ites. See on v. 457. — 580. Phry- 
giis. See on I. 182. Comitata. See on I. 312. Ministris ; 
doubtless male attendants. — 581. Occident . . . arserit . . . su- 
darit. These fut. perfs. are meant to indicate those circumstances 
in the past which make it monstrous that the event spoken of as fu- 
ture, adspiciet, ibit, videbit, should ever be realized. The sense is : shall 
she return, now that Priam has been murdered, etc. So ibit . . . illa- 
serit, IV. 590. — 584. Feminea. See on Hector eum, v. 543. — 
585. Exstinxisse . . . sumpsisse. The ordinary construction 
would be laudabor quod exstinxi, or qui exstinxerim. Nefas ; con- 
temptuously of a person. Merentes . . . poenas, like sceleratas 
poenas, v. 576. — 587. Ultricis flammae ;. for ultionis. Gr. 410. 
7. 2). A. & S. 220. 3. Cf. I. 215. With cineres meorum cf. flamma 
extrema meorum, v. 431. 

588. Talia jactabam. Cf. I. 102. Furiata mente. Cf. V. 
407. — 589. Videndam = ut viderem. — 591. Confessa. See on v. 
514. Que couples the clause to which it belongs with confessa deam. 
Videri. See on E. IV. 16. — 592. Quanta. The stature of the 
gods was greater than that of men. Prehensum continuit. See 
on I. 69. Venus seizes the hand with which Aeneas was laying hold 
of his sword. — 593. Roseo . . . ore. Cf. I. 402. — 595. Nostri 
. . . cura. Venus identifies herself with the family of which she 
formed a part, and to which Aeneas owed protection. Gr. 396. II. 
A. & S. 211, R. 3 {a). Tibi. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 
596. Prius ; i. e. before doing anything else. — 597. Liqueris. 
Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. The real meaning is : where he, whom you 
left at home, may be now. — 598. Omnes may go with quos or 
acies. The editors generally prefer the former. — 599. Resistat. 
The present expresses that the danger, and consequently the guardi- 
anship, are not over. Gr. 504. 1. A. & S. 261, R. 3. Tulerint and 
hauserit, on the other hand, for the sake of liveliness, speak of the 
destruction as already a thing of the past. — 600. Tulerint. See 
on E. V. 34. Haurire ; of a weapon or other offensive agent, prob- 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 57 1 

ably as devouring flesh or drinking blood. — 601. Tibi refers to the 
whole sentence, as in I. 261. It is not, as you think ; or this over- 
throw that you mourn is not caused by, &c. — 602. Culpatus ; i. e. 
whom you and others blame ; used as an adj. Divum. In trans- 
lating supply but. — 603. A culmine = from its summit ; i. e. from 
top to bottom. See on v. 290. — 605. Et — caligat = and humid 
spreads a veil of mist around you. — 608. Moles; the walls and 
buildings. — 609. Pulvere. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257. — 610. Magno 

— tridenti belongs really to muros as well as to fundamenta, though 
grammatically only to the latter. — 612. Scaeas . . . portas. The 
Scaean gate, being the western gate, looked toward the shore, and 
the battle naturally thickened round it. — 613. Prima ; because at 
the entrance of the city. See on v. 334. — 615. Summas arces ; 
referring to the citadel. Tritonia. See on v. 171. — 616. Nimbo 

— saeva = refulgent with a storm-cloud and the fierce Gorgon. 
Nimbo is the furious storm-cloud, indicative of her wrath, with which 
she is enveloped ; Gorgone is the frightful Gorgon Medusa, whose 
head Minerva had placed upon her shield ; and both are lighted up 
either by the lurid glare of the conflagration or by the lightnings from 
the cloud. — 617. Pater. See on G. I. 121. Secundas = auspi- 
cious. — 618. In — arma ; i. e. against the Trojans who continue to 
offer resistance. — 619. Eripe . . . fugam ; i. e. flight is the only 
thing now within your grasp, and you may by delay lose the oppor- 
tunity for this. Labori = to the struggle. — 621. Dixerat. A. & 
S. 259, R. 1 (3). — 623. Numina = powers. — 624. Turn vero ; 
i. e. after his eyes have been opened to see Heaven fighting against 
Troy. Omne ; emphatic. — 625. Neptunia. See on G. I. 502. — 
626. Ac veluti = even as. — 627. Quum ; with ac vehiti. Ac- 
cisam = which they have begun to fell. Crebris. See on crebro, 
v. 492. Instant = are pressing on, striving. — 628. Certatim ; 
with instant. Minatur ; i. e. to fall. — 629. Vertice. Gr. 414 and 
3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 630. Evicta ; stronger than victa. Su- 
premum. Gr. 371, 1. 3) (2). A. & S. 232 (3). — 631. Congemuit 
= has groaned loudly. Traxitque — ruinam = and having been 
torn off (i. e. from the stump), has fallen heavily along the mountain. 

— 632. Descendo. See on v. 570. Ducente deo = under di- 
vine guidance ; the masc. being used in a general sense, though a 
goddess is meant. — 633. Expedior = I make my way in safety : 
lit. I am extricated. — 634. Perventum (sc. «/) = I arrived. Gr. 
301. 3. A. & S. 184. 2. — 636. Primum ; with quern. Montes ; 
i. e. Ida, vv. 801 foil. — 638. Integer — aevi = unimpaired by age. 
Gr. 399. 3. 4). A. & S. 213. — 639. Suo ; emphatic. Robore. 
For abl. see on regno, I. 268. — 640. Agitate = hasten forward : 
involving the notion both of preparation and execution. — 642. Satis, 



572 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

etc. In prose we might have had satis superque est quod vidimus, etc. 
The allusion is to the destruction of Troy by Hercules in the reign 
of Laomedon. — 643. Superavimus. Cf. v. 597. Urbi. Gr. 384. 
A. & S. 223. Una in the form of semel must be supplied to captae 
urbi. — 644. Sic is probably to be taken with positum : just as I am. 
AfiFati seems to refer to the conclamatio rather than to the indamatio. 
See on I. 219. They are to treat him as if he were already dead, and 
leave him. — 645. Ipse manu are so* frequently connected together 
by Virg. in the sense of doing a thing with one's own hand (see on v. 
321), that it seems impossible to give them any other sense here. 
Miserebitur hostis on the other hand is more naturally understood of 
death from an enemy than of an enemy's abstaining from maltreat- 
ing the dead ; and the words of Aeneas, v. 661, rather favor the 
same view. Forb. therefore seems right in supposing that Anchises 
means to follow Priam's example, mingling in battle and provoking 
his death. Cf. Meruisse mami, v. 434. Exuviasque petet indi- 
cates that the enemy might kill him for other reasons than pity. — 
647. Annos demoror = have I been delaying the years. Gr. 
467. 2. A. & S. 145. 2. — 649. Fulminis . . . ventis. Virg. may 
have thought of the wind of the thunderbolt's motion. See on I. 
45. Afflavit = blasted. The story was that Anchises was struck 
with lightning for divulging his intercourse with Venus. — 650. Me- 
morans = dicens. Cf. v. 73. I. 327. — 651. Nos. Gr. 446. 2. A. 
& S. 209, R. 7 (b). Effusi (sc. sumus) lacrimis = in tears (began 
to entreat). Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 652. Vertere. See on I. 20. 
653. Fato — incumbere = to lend his weight to the destiny that 
was bearing us down. Vellet depends on effusi lacrimis, which con- 
tains the notion of orabamus. — 655. Feror. See on v. 383. — 656. 
Consilium . . . fortuna = expedient . . . way of safety. — 658. Ne- 
fas = impiety. — 660. Sedet ; of a fixed resolution, IV. 15 ; V. 418. 
etc., sometimes with animo, sometimes with a dat. of the person, 
sometimes without a case. Animo. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 
and 2. — 661. Isti ; i. e. to that death you covet so. — 662. Jam = 
in a moment. — 664. Hoc erat . . . quod eripis = was it for this 
. . . that thou dost rescue. Quod eripis is the subject, hoc the predi- 
cate, and ut cemam explains hoc. Hoc and qzwdare adverbial or cog- 
nate' accusatives. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). See on v. 141. The 
tenses are confused, ut cernam depending on hoc erat. — 665. Mediis, 
etc. See on v. 508. — 668. Ferte arma. We are to suppose that 
he had taken off his armor on returning home. So Rursus in arma 
feror, y. 655. Lux ultima; like summa dies, v. 324. — 669. Re- 
visam. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 671. Accingor. See on 
v. 383. — 672. Insertabam. The strap or handle of the shield, 
through which the arm was passed, was technically denominated in- 



THE AENEID. BOOK II. 573 

serlorium. — 675. Et = also. — 676. Expertus ; i. e. as having 
been already in the battle. — 678. Quondam . . . dicta = once 
called. — 681. Manus inter, etc. Creusa had Ascanius in her 
arms and was pressing him upon Aeneas. This explains tendebat, v. 
674. — 682. Levis . . . apex = a light tapering flame. — 683. 
Tactu. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 684. Flamma is the same as 
the levis apex. — 685. Trepidare = began to bustle about. Gr. 
545. 1. A. & S. 209, R. 5. — 686. Fontibus = with spring water. 

— 688. Coelo; for ad coelum. Cf. v. 405. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 
225. IV. R. 2. — 689. Si. See on G. I. 7. Cf. V. 687 foil. — 690. 
Hoc tantum ; sc. rogo. See on v. 79. — 691. Firma. Serv. says 
that it was usual for the Romans to ask for a second omen confirming 
the first. — 692. Vix.. . . que. See on v. 172. — 693. Laevum 
= on the left. Thunder on the left was a good omen in Roman au- 
gury. — 694. Stella = a meteor. Facem = a fiery train. Multa 
cum luce ; with facem ducens. Idaea . . . silva; the woods on Mt. 
Ida. — 697. Signantemque vias. The sense seems to be fixed 
by the parallel, V. 526, to the imprinting of the meteor's path along 
the sky. Que couples signantem with labentem. Turn. After the 
disappearance of the meteor any trail that it left would be more per- 
ceptible. Longo limite = in a long path. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 
247 and 2. — 699. Se — auras ; i. e. rises. We may presume from v. 
644 and the context generally that Anchises was stretched on his bed. 

— 701. Jam, as elsewhere, = already ; and the repetition strength- 
ens it. We may render : " No more, no more delay from me." Ad- 
sum is stronger than ibo. Lead me by what way you will, I am there 
already. — 703. Vestro — est = Troy (i. e. the Trojan race) is in 
your keeping, under your protection. — 704. Tibi comes ire = 
tecum ire. Gr. 390 and 2. A. & S. 227, R. 4. Cf. VI. 158. — 
706. Aestus ; ace. — 707. Imponere. See on v. 383. — 708. 
Humeris. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Cf. IV. 599. Iste 
very beautifully suggests the reason why the burden will not be op- 
pressive : it consists of thee. — 709. Quo . . . cumque; tmesis. 

— 710. Mihi. See on tibi, v. 704. — 712. Dicam ; fut. indie. 
Animis advertite ; a variety for the common animos advertite ad ea. 

— 713. Urbe egressis = as you go out of the city. For the dat. 
see on I. 102. — 714. Desertae = solitary ; because she, i. e. her 
temple, stood in an unfrequented spot. — 715. Religione = by the 
religious observance. — 716. Ex diverso = from different parts. — 
718. Me . . . attrectare. Gr. 549 and 1. A. & S. 269 and R. 2. 
Caede recenti. We have seen, v. 167, that part of the crime of 
Diomedes and Ulysses was that they touched the Palladium with 
their blood-stained hands. — 719. Vivo. Only running water could 
be used for the purification. 



574 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

721. Humeros. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 722. Super; ad- 
verb. 725. Ferimur. See on v. 383. Opaca locorum. See on 
I. 422. — 727. Adverso — Graii = Greeks gathered thickly together 
in hostile array. — 729. Comiti ; Ascanius. — 731. Evasisse = to 
have passed over in safety. See on v. 458. Cf. III. 282. Ad aures ; 
with adesse, as in V. 55. — 735. Mini. Gr. 386. 2. A. & S. 224, R. 2. 
Nescio quod = some ; lit. I know not what. Gr. 525. 4. A. & S. 
265, R. 4. Male amicum. See on v. 23.-736. Confusam 
eripuit. See on I. 29, 69. Cursu. See on I. 157. — 737. Re- 
gione = line, direction. — 738. Misero — incertum = whether 
my wife Creusa, torn from me unhappy (one) by fate, stopped, or wan- 
dered from the way, or weary sat down, (is) uncertain. Misero be- 
longs to mihi understood. Erepta fato applies really to all three 
verbs, the meaning being that she was separated finally from Aeneas, 
whatever was the cause. The indicatives are used instead of sub- 
junctives, which we should have naturally expected, like laetantur, 
E. IV. 52, sparsit, E. V. 7, mittit, G. I. 57, being regarded as the prin- 
cipal verbs in the sentence, and incertum merely as a sort of qualify- 
ing adverb. Gr. 525. 6. A. & S. 265, R. 1. — 739. Seu is used 
co-ordinately with ne, as Tacitus uses sive co-ordinately with an. We 
have already had seu . . . sive after dubii, I. 218. —741. Nee — 
quam = nor did I observe that she was lost or turn my mind (tow- 
ards her) before that. — 742. Tumulum . . . sedem. Gr. 379. 4. 
A. & S. 237, R. 5 (c). Antiquae refers rather to the temple than to 
the goddess. — 744. Comites = as her companions. Comites simply 
expresses in what respect she played them false, or escaped their 
notice. — 745. Deorumque. Gr. 663. III. 1. 4). A. & S. 304 (4) ; 
307. 3. — 749. Cingor. See on v. 383. — 750. Stat with an infin., 
of a fixed resolution, like sedet. Cf. v. 660. — 753. Retro — se- 
quor = I observe and trace backward. See on I. 29, 69. — 754. 
Lumine = with the eye. — 755. Si forte = on the chance that. 
See on v. 136. — 761. Porticibus — asylo = in the desolate clois- 
ters, Juno's sanctuary; i. e. temple. — 765. Auro solidi = of solid 
gold : lit. solid with gold. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 772. 
Infelix ; with reference to Aeneas's feeling, not to Creusa's actual 
condition. — 773. Nota = solita. The forms of the shades, like 
those of the gods (see on v. 592), were supposed to be larger than 
human, apparently as being no longer " cabined, cribbed, confined " 
by the body. —774. Steterunt; like tulerunt, E. IV. 61. — 775. 
Affari . . . demere. Gr. 545. 1. A. and S. 209, R. 5. — 777. Numine 
= will, purpose. See on v. 123 ; I. 133. Cf. V. 56. — 779. Aut 
(= nor) connects fas (= destiny) with regnator, as one of the sub- 
jects of sinit. Ille is peculiarly used of Jupiter, as a title of rever- 
ence. — 780. Tibi. Gr. 388. I. A. & S. 225. III. Exsilia. The 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 575 

plural has here (as indeed frequently in poetry), a rhetorical force, as 
multiplying the troubles of Aeneas. Arandum is used strictly with 
aequor, loosely with exsilia (zeugma), = to be undergone ... to be 
traversed. — 781. Et = and then. Terram. See on v. 742. Hes- 
periam. See on I. 569. Lydius refers to the traditional origin of 
the Etruscans from Lydia, a country in the western part of Asia 
Minor. Arva — virum = through the rich cultivated lands of heroes. 

— 784. Parta is peculiarly used of things that are virtually, though 
not actually realized. Cf. III. 495 ; VI. 89 ; E. III. 68. Creusae. 
See on I. 462. — 785. Myrmidonum — Dolopum. See on v. 7. 

— 786. Aut. See on v. 779. Servitum. Gr. 569. A. & S. 276. I. 
and II. — 787. Dardanis. Gr. 316. A. & S. 100. 1 (£). — 788. 
Genetrix ; Cybele. She was one of the patronesses of Troy, being 
a Phrygian goddess, and worshipped on Ida. Virg. means evidently 
that Creusa is to become one of her attendants, passing from ordi- 
nary humanity into a half-deified state, which agrees with v. 773. — 
789. Serva . . . amorem; i. e. continue to love. — 792. Ibi = turn. 
Collo. Gr. 384. 1. A. & S. 249. I. R. 3. — 795. Sic. Cf. I. 225. 

— 798. Pubem = a band, company. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. It is 
meant to include vaguely the whole body. — 799. Parati ; sc. deduct 
or some similar word. — 800. Velim. Gr. 486. III. A. & S. 260. II. 
Pelago. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247. 3 or 255. 2. — 801. Jugis 
summae Idae ; i. e. from the summit of Ida. Lucifer. The story 
was that Lucifer, the star of Venus, guided Aeneas to Itaty. — 803. 
Spes opis may either be hope of giving aid, or, more probably, 
hope of receiving it, Aeneas identifying himself with the city. 



THE AENEID. Book III. 

In the Third Book Virgil treads yet more closely in the steps of 
Homer, the subject being the wanderings of Aeneas, as that of the 
Ninth and three following books of the Odyssey is the wanderings of 
Ulysses. Yet the only place in which the two lines of adventure 
actually touch is when they enter the country of the Cyclops ; and 
there Virgil has skilfully contrived not to rival Homer's story, but to 
appropriate it, and to make Aeneas reap the fruit of Ulysses's ex- 
perience without being obliged to repeat it in his own person. For 
his other incidents he is indebted partly to other portions of the body 
of heroic legend, partly to his own invention. Polydorus is from the 



576 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

Greek drama ; the bleeding myrtle, however, may be Virgil's own, 
though Heyne gives the credit of it to the Cyclic poets : the adven- 
ture with the Harpies was suggested by Apollonius, who also gave 
hints for the predictions of Helenus and the deliverance of Ache- 
menides : other legends seem to have given the outline of the voy- 
age, indicating the several places touched at. The mistakes made in 
searching for the new kingdom, the scene at Delos, the appearance 
of the Penates, the meeting with Andromache, seem all to be more 
or less original. 

ARGUMENT. 

Troy, according to the almost universal tradition, was taken in the 
summer. The winter of this year, which counts as the first of the 
seven, is spent by Aeneas in making preparations (i -7). He sails 
in the spring or summer of the second year (8-12), and spends the 
winter in Thrace, where he builds a city (13-18). The tragedy of 
Polydorus drives him away in the spring of the third year (19-69). 
He goes to Delos, and thence to Crete. . Two years are supposed to 
be consumed in his unfortunate attempt at colonization. His stay at 
Actium brings him to the end of the fifth year (70-284). The sixth 
year is spent partly in Epirus, partly in Sicily. In the summer of the 
seventh he arrives at Carthage (I. 755). The remainder of the Book 
(285 - 715) embraces the incidents of the sixth year, and of the seventh 
up to the time of the arrival. 

1. Asiae. See on II. 557. — 2. Immeritam ; i. e. undeserving 
such a fate. The crimes of Laomedon and Paris were the cause, not 
the nation in general. Visum ; the same as in II. 428. — 3. Humo 
= from the ground : expressing total overthrow. Fumat. Mark 
the pres. as expressing continuance. Neptunia. See on II. 625. — 
4. Diversa exsilia = a remote place of exile ; i. e. widely removed 
from Troy. Desertas = unoccupied ; and so fit for settlement. Cf. 
vv. 122, 123. — 5. Sub ipsa = close beneath. — 6. Antandro; a 
city at the foot of Ida. Molimur ; as in I. 424. — 7. Sistere. Gr. 
549. A. & S. 269. —8. Prima. Gr. 441. 6. A. & S. 205, R. 17. 
A winter has passed since the fall of Troy. — 9. Et. See on II. 1 72. 
Fatis. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. — 10. Quum=^ turn. — 12. Pen- 
atibus et magnis dis. What the Penates were was an unsolved 
problem among the ancients themselves. Virg. classes them here 
with the magni Di, and elsewhere, II. 293, 296, and IX. 258 foil, with 
Vesta ; but it is not clear in either case whether the association im- 
plies distinction or identification. All that can be said is that they 
were supposed to be in a peculiar sense the national gods of Troy. 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 577 

(cf. v. 63, where Acestes has other Penates of his own), and that, as 
their name imports, they were connected with the home and the 
hearth. Their images were easily carried, as appears from II. 717. 
— 13. Procul. Thrace was separated from the Troad only by the 
Hellespont, so that procul is used, as it sometimes is, without any 
notion of great distance, expressing local separation, and no more. 
Mavortia. Mars was the tutelary divinity of Thrace. See on I. 276. 
Campis. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 14. Thraces arant 
is interposed like Tyrii tenner e coloni, I. 12. Regnata is used pas- 
sively here and in VI. 793 (where, as here, it is followed by the dat), 
though regno is not properly a transitive verb. Lycurgo ; a king of 
Thrace, who, it is said, boldly opposed Bacchus and drove him out 
of his kingdom : hence acri. — 15. Hospitium — Penates = (which 
was) an ancient guest-land of Troy and (whose) Penates (were) allied 
(to ours) ; i. e. between which and Troy there was a friendly alliance. 
Hospitium and Penates may be regarded grammatically as in apposi- 
tion with Terra. — 16. Dum fuit. For the perfect with dum in 
the sense of while, cf. I. 268. — 17. Moenia. It is supposed that 
Virg. refers to Aenos, a town of Thrace, at the mouth of the Hebrus. 
Prima may either mean that this was his first attempt at building 
the promised city, or that he began to lay the foundation of a city. 
Ingressus ; sc. terram. Iniquis = nolentibus, non fave7itibus. — 
18. Aeneadas. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. Nomen ; i. e. for the in- 
habitants, not for the place. — 19. Dionaeae. See on E. IX. 47. 
Divisque ; i. e. and the rest of the gods. It was customary to add 
a general to a special invocation. For an example see G. I. 21. — 
20. Nitentem = shining, sleek. Cf. VI. 654. — 22. Tumulus. 
'The mound is apparently of sand, which had accumulated over the 
unburied body of Polydorus, if we suppose Virg. to follow the same 
story as Euripides, who makes Polymestor throw his victim's corpse 
into the sea. — 23. Hastilibus ; i. e. spear-like wands, or shafts. 
Cf. G. II. 447. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 24. Silvam. 
Cf. G. II. 15, 26.-25. Tegerem; i. e. to wreathe or shadow the 
altars. See on II. 249.-27. Quae. Gr. 445. 8. A. & S. 206 (3) 
and {a). —28. Huic ; for ex hoc. Sanguine. Gr. 428. A. & S. 
211, R. 6. It may be treated as an abl. of manner, being regarded as 
a variety for ater liquitur sanguis guttis. — 29. Mini. See on Aeneae y 
I. 92. — 30. Gelidus ; proleptic. — 32. Insequor = I proceed. 
Tentare. Sec on II. 38. — 33. Cortice seems to be the skin of 
the root. — 34. Nymphas ; i. e. the Hamadryads. See on E. V. 
75. — 35. Gradivum ; an epithet of Mars. Patrem ; merely a title 
of honor. See on G. II. 4. Geticis = Thracian ; lit. Getic. See 
on Ov. Trist. IV. 10. 1 10. — 36. Rite == duly. It is used not of 
formal applications to the gods, but of the regular, and, as it were, due 
37 



57^ NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

blessings which the gods confer. Secundarent visus = to render 
the portent propitious. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. Omen 
levarent : a parallel expression. The omen was apparently gravis ; 
Aeneas asks to have it made levis. — 39. Lacrimabilis = piteous. 
40. Reddita = sent forth. — 41. Jam = at last ; i. e. after this 
third effort. — 42. Parce. See on E. III. 94. — 42. Scelerare ; i. e. 
by disturbing the grave of a fellow-countryman and relative. Non 

— tulit = Troy produced me not a stranger to thee ; i. e. I am a 
Trojan, not an alien. — 43. Aut ; for neqiw, non being taken with 
both clauses. Cf. II. 779. — 44. Crudeles terras ; like crudeles 
aras, I. 355. Litus avarum is an expression of the same kind. — 45. 
Ferrea ; because the points were iron. — 46. Jaculis — acutis = 
has shot up into sharp javelins. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. 

— 47. Turn vero denotes a further stage of horror than that de- 
scribed in vv. 29, 30. Ancipiti expresses the doubt of Aeneas wheth- 
er he ought to remain in the country or leave it. Alendum. Gr. 
578. V. A. & S. 274, R. 7. — 51. Regi ; Polymestor. Armis. 
Gr. 385. A. & S. 223, R. 2. — 52. Cingi — obsidione. Virgil's 
meaning evidently is that as the Greeks grew stronger the siege was 
converted into a blockade. — 53. Fortuna recessit. Fortune is 
said to retire, as in v. 615, to remain. — 54. Res Agamemiionias 
= the interest, fortunes of Agamemnon ; i. e. the Grecian cause. — 
55. Fas omne (V. 800) seems here to stand for all laws, human and 
divine. — 56. Potitur. Gr. 286. 1. A. & S. 177. Quid. Gr. 374. 
5. A. & S. 231, R. 5 {a) and (0). — 57. Sacra = accursed ; be- 
cause sacra is used of what is consecrated, i. e. devoted to the infer- 
nal gods. — 60, 61. Excedere . . . linqui . . . dare. Gr. 363 ; 
553. II. A. & S. 204 ; 270, R. 1 (c). For the mixture of the pas- 
sive with the active infinitive cf. V. 773. — 61. Pollutum hospi- 
tium ; like pollute) amore, V. 6, the notion in each case apparently 
being the breach of a sacred tie. — 62. Instauramus = we perform. 
It is a term for sacrificial and other solemnities, so that we need not 
bring in the notion of a new interment. — 63. Aggeritur tumulo = 
is added to the mound ; i. e. the casual mound already existing (v. 
22). Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Stant = are erected. Cf. v. 305 ; E. 
V. 66. — 64. Caeruleis ; of a sad color. Vittis. The altars are 
wreathed with fillets, as elsewhere with boughs. Atra; referring 
rather to the associations (the cypress being used in funerals) than to 
the actual color of the leaves. — 66. Inferimus = we bring ; i. e. as 
libations : a sacrificial term. Tepido ; because newly milked. Lacte ; 
with spumantia. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 67. Sacri; 
i. e. of the blood of victims. Cf. V. 78. — 68. Condimus = we lay 
to rest : just as we talk of laying a spirit, as the soul would wander 
so long as the body was unburied. Cf. VI. 326 foil. Magna — cie- 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 579 

mils. The reference is to the indamatio already mentioned on I. 219. 
Supremum ; not the ace of the object, but the adverbial ace, the 
object being animam ; we call upon his spirit with the last call, or for 
the last time. The last thing done at an interment was to bid fare- 
well to the deceased by pronouncing the word vale. Gr. 380. 2. 
A. & S. 232 (3). — 69. Fides pelago. Cf. meis te fidere regnis, V. 
800. Gr. 392. I. and 1. A. & S. 222, R. 8. — 70. Auster ; for ven- 
tus. — 71. Deducunt. See on I. 551. — 73. Sacra . . . tellus = a 
sacred land ; i. e. Delos, the birthplace of Apollo and Diana. See 
on Ov. M. VI. 187, 190. — 74. Matri ; Doris. See on II. 419. The 
dative limits gratissima. Aegaeo ; applied to Neptune because he 
was supposed to delight especially in the Aegean sea. — 75. Pius = 
grateful ; i. e. to his own birthplace and to the island which had shel- 
tered his mother. Arcitenens ; Apollo ; i. e. as the bearer, of the 
bow, the archer. — Oras et litora. See on G. II. 44. — 76. E = 
to ; lit. from ; suggesting the notion of distance. — Mycono Gyaro- 
que ; two of the Cyclades, the former quite near, the latter at a con- 
siderable distance from Delos. — 77. Immotam — dedit = and 
rendered it fixed (so as) to be inhabited. — 79. Apollinis urbem ; 
Delos. — 83. Hospitio ; i. e. in consequence of the guest-friendship 
or tie of hospitality which had been already formed between Anius 
and Anchises. — 84. Saxo . . . structa vetusto = vetusta ; lit. 
built of old rock. The material is here conceived of as a means, and 
hence in the abl. without a preposition. — Venerabar = I began to 
venerate (the temple) and to pray. — 85. Propriam. See on E. 
VII. 31. Thymbraee ; an epithet of Apollo derived from Thym- 
bra, a plain and city of Troas, where he had a temple. — 86. Man- 
suram = that will remain, be permanent. Altera — Pergama. 
The city is regarded as already existing in the persons of those who 
are to inhabit it. See on II. 703. — 87. Reliquias — Achilli. See 
onl. 30. — 88. Quem sequimur; i. e. who is to be our guide? 
like quae — vito ? v. 367. In both cases, the present shows the 
urgency of the request. They had started without any clear notion 
of their destination, v. 7. — 89. Pater. See on G. II. 4. Augu- 
rium is loosely used for an oracular response. See on v. 5. Animis 
— nostris is expressed as if the inspiration which Apollo gives to 
the seer (VI. n) were imparted to the ordinary applicant at the tem- 
ple. — 90. Vix. See on II. 172. Omnia is explained by what 
follows. — 91. Liminaque. The lengthening of a short syllable is 
very rare when it ends in a vowel. Gr. 669. V. A. & S. 309 (1). — 
92. Adytis . . . reclusis. So the temple flies open to give the re- 
sponse, VI. 81. Cortina; the tripod. —93. Submissi — terram 
= we prostrate ourselves reverently upon the ground. — 94. Duri 
= inured to hardships, hardy. Quae. See on quae, v. 27. A 






580 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

stirpe — tulit ; i. e. the land where your ancestral stock first grew. 

— 95. Ubere laeto = with joyous fruitfulness, into her fertile 
bosom ; perhaps with a reference to the image of a mother following. 
Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 96. Matrem. Cf. G. II. 268. 

— 99. Mixto . . . tumultu ; i. e. on account of the doubtful in- 
terpretation. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257. — 100. Moenia; i. e. the city 
which Apollo had promised by implication. — 101. Quo ; not refer- 
ring to moenia, but introducing a separate question. — 102. Monu- 
menta = traditions. — 103. Spes ; i. e. the object of your hopes. 
Cf. V. 672. — 104. Jovis . . . insula ; as the birthplace of Jove. — 
106. Habitant; i. e. men inhabit: another way of saying centum 
zirbes habitantur. Regna ; each being an independent sovereignty. 
— 107. Maximus . . . pater (sc. natu) — our eldest ancestor ; i. e. 
the founder of our race. There were two legends. According to one 
Teucer was a native of Troas, and the first king of Troy. Dardanus 
came to Teucer, received his daughter in marriage, and afterwards be- 
came his successor in the kingdom. According to the other Dar- 
danus was a native prince of Troy, and Teucer immigrated into Troas 
from Crete, married the daughter of Dardanus, and succeeded to his 
throne. This double origin of the Trojan race is the cause of An- 
chises's mistake ; but it seems from II. 781 that Aeneas should have 
set him right. — 108. Rhoeteas. Troas is so called from the prom- 
ontory of Rhoeteum on the Hellespont. — 109. Optavit. See on 
I. 425. — 110. Steterant. See on stant, v. 63. Habitabant 
See on v. 106. — 111. Hinc; i. e. from Crete. Mater; i. e. of the 
gods. Cultrix Cybelae = the inhabitant of Cybele : a mountain in 
Phrygia, from which she derived her name. Corybantia aera = 
the brazen cymbals of the Corybantes ; i. e. the priests of Cybele, 
who worshipped her in the forests and on the mountains of Phrygia 
with drums, cymbals, horns, and dances. — 112. Idaeum nemus ; 
i. e. where the rights of Cybele were celebrated. Fida — sacris 
refers to the mysteries of Cybele. Gr. 387. A. & S. 226. — 113. 
Cybele was represented as drawn by lions. All these are mentioned 
as derived by Phrygia from Crete. — 115. Placemus ventos ; of 
sacrificing to the gods of the sea, as vv. 119, 120 show. G-nosia. See 
on G. I. 222. — 116. Nee — cursu; about one hundred and fifty 
miles. Gr. 418 and 2. A. & S. 236. Juppiter may be mentioned 
as the god of the weather. See on E. VII. 60. Adsit. Gr. 503. I. ; 
505. A. & S. 263. 2 (1). — 118. Aris. Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 
254, R. 3. — 119. Neptuno . . . Apollo. Neptune and Apollo are 
the tutelary deities of Troy ; and there is a further reason for invok- 
ing them here, the one as the god of the sea, the other as having 
given the oracle. Pulcher Apollo. Cf. E. IV. 57. — 120. Pecu- 
dem ; probably a lamb, which, V. 772, is offered under similar circum- 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 53 1 

stances to the Tempestates. — 122. Idomenea. Gr. 46. 3. 5). A. & 
S. 54. 5 ; 86. Idomeneus, a distinguished Grecian chief, led a band 
of Cretans to the Trojan war. The story is that on his voyage home- 
ward he was overtaken by a storm and vowed to the gods of the sea 
that he would sacrifice the first thing that met him on landing, that 
this proved to be his son, that he fulfilled his vow, that a plague 
visited Crete, and that the inhabitants consequently expelled him, 
when he settled in Calabria, as mentioned in v. 400. — 123. Hoste. 
Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 250. 2 (2). Vacare = are without. Ad- 
stare = stand ready to (our hand). Virg. expresses himself as if the 
Cretans had vacated the country as well as Idomeneus ; but he may 
only mean that now that their chief was gone, the people would not 
be unwilling to receive the Trojans. — 124. Ortygiae ; the ancient 
name of Delos : lit. quail-island. — 125. Bacchatam. See on G. II. 
487. Jugis. Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. Naxon. See 
on Ov. M. III. 636. Donysam ; a small island east of Naxos. 
Viridem refers probably to its vegetation. — 126. Olearon ; a small 
island west of Paros, belonging, like Donysa, to the group called 
Sporades. Niveam Paron ; one of the Cyclades, famed for its 
white marble : hence niveam. — 127. Cycladas. Virg. first specifies 
some of the individuals of the group, and then sums them all up in 
the general clause, sparsas — Cycladas. So the Sporades, referred to 
in the words crebris freta consita terris = thickly sown with numerous 
lands. Legimus = we coast along ... we traverse, pass through : 
zeugma. — 128. Vario certamine = with various emulation ; i. e. 
striving to outdo each other. Cf. v. 290. — 139. Hortantur = 
encourage each other. Cretam — petamus ; giving a notion of sail- 
or language : For Crete and our forefathers, ho ! Gr. 487. A. & S. 
260, R. 6. — 130. Prosequitur has here its proper sense of act- 
ing as an escort or convoy. A puppi = astern. Euntes = as we 
go. — 131. Curetum ; the most ancient inhabitants of Crete, who 
worshipped Jupiter with noisy music and armed dances. They are 
sometimes identified with the Corybantes. — 132. Optatae molior. 
See on I. 424, 425. — 133. Pergameam ; sc. urbem. Cognomine. 
Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 134. Amare. Gr. 558. VI. 3. 
A. & S. 273. 2 and (b). Arcem — tectis = to build the citadel high 
with roofs. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 135. Jamque. 
See on I. 223. Fere = just ; referring to the two next clauses as well 
as to the one in which it stands. Subductae. See on I. 551. — 136. 
Connubiis arvisque. Gr. 669. II. and 3 ; 384. A. & S. 306. 1 
and (3); 223. Operata (sc. est) = were occupied with. — 137. 
Jura — dab am ; i. e. a settled government is established (cf. I. 
426 ; V. 758), and houses (either sites, or buildings vacated by the 
Cretans, v. 123) apportioned. — 137-139. Membris; with venit, 



582 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

like arboribus satisque. Tractu. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257. The pas- 
sage may be freely rendered thus : Suddenly there came on the human 
frame a wasting sickness, shed from the whole tainted expanse of the 
sky, a piteous blight on trees and crops, a year charged with death. 
— 140. Linquebant — animas. The life is generally said to leave 
the man, not the man the life. Cf. V. 517. — 141. Steriles ; pro- 
leptic. Exurere. Gr. 545. 1. A. & S. 209, R. 5. Sirius. See on 
G. I. 218. — 142. Victum . . . negabat. Cf. G. I. 149. — 143. 
Remenso. Cf. II. 181. — 144. Hortatur . . . ire. See on v. 134. 
Mari. See -on tractu, v. 138. Veniam ; i. e. a gracious answer to 
the questions which follow. See on I. 519. — 145. Ferat . . . jubeat. 
Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Ferat may be either tell or give. See on 
da, v. 85. — 148. Effigies divum are the statues, not the appear- 
ances in vision. Cf. VII. 443. Penates. See on v. 12. — 150. 
Jacentis = as I lay. — 150. In somnis, etc. We have here appar- 
ently a mixture of dream and vision, as in I. 355 ; II. 296, the moon- 
light belonging to the latter, the other circumstances to the former. 
— 153. Affari . . . demere. See on exicrere, v. 141. — 154. Dic- 
turus . . . est ; said rhetorically, as if Aeneas were certainly going 
to arrive there. — 155. Ultro ; i. e. without waiting to be asked. 
See on II. 279. — 156. Dardania= Troja. Arma secuti; sc. sunt. 
Cf. v. 54. — 158. Idem ; emphatic. Gr. 451. 3. A. & S. 207, R. 27 
(a). — 159. Tollemus in astra; referring generally to the super- 
human glory of A'eneas's descendants, rather than specially to the 
actual apotheosis of Caesar or Augustus. — 159. Magnis = for your 
great gods : not, as is generally understood, the nepotes, but the magni 
Penates (IX. 258) or magni di who are speaking, the authors and im- 
personations of this national greatness. Cf. II. 295. — 160. Fugae ; 
as Aeneas is said, I. 2, to be fato profugus. — 162. Delius ; an epi- 
thet of Apollo, from Delos, the place of his birth. Aut. See on v. 
43. Cretae. Gr. 424 and 1. A. & S. 221, R. 1. — 163-166. 
Repeated from I. 530-533, where see notes. — 167. Nobis illus- 
trates magnis, v. 159. They identify themselves with the Trojans, or 
rather the Trojans with themselves. Propriae. Cf. v. 85. — 167. 
Dardanus . . . Iasius. It is difficult to reconcile the text with the 
legend ; which was that Dardanus and Iasius were brothers, the sons 
of Corythus, an Etruscan prince of Corythus (Cortona), or of Jupiter 
by the wife of Corythus, that they emigrated from Etruria and set- 
tled, Dardanus in Phrygia, where he married the daughter of Teucer, 
and became his successor in the kingdom of Troy, and Iasius in 
Samothrace. In order to make Virg. consistent with himself, and 
with the line of tradition which he seems to have followed, we must 
suppose him to use pater vaguely, as a mere term of respect, like 
pater Aeneas^ and to intend a quo to refer to Dardanus. The Ian- 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 583 

guage is certainly against this, but by taking Iasiusque pater as 
parenthetical, the difficulty will be in a measure removed. Heyne 
and Wr. explain it thus : Dardanus cum lasio, a quo Dardqnio. — 
168. A quo principe = from which prince. — 169. Surge age. 
See on v. 462. — 170. Corythum ; the place Corythus. Requirat. 
Gr. 488 and II. A. & S. 260, R. 6. — 171. Ausonias = Ausonian, 
Italian : from Ausones, a very ancient name of the primitive inhabi- 
tants of lower and middle Italy. Dictaea = Cretan. See on G. II. 
536. — 173. Sopor = a deep sleep ; i. e. favorable for a vivid dream. 
Illud ; instead of We, the usual attraction being neglected. — 174. 
Velatas ; i. e. crowned with fillets. — 175. Turn. The sentence is 
interrupted at deorum by the' parenthesis, which produces an anaco- 
luthon (see on I. 237), v. 175 introducing another sentence. Corpore. 
Gr. 425. 3. 4). A. & S. 251. — 177. Munera . . . intemerata = 
offerings of unmixed and choice wine. — 178. Focis. The hearth 
was the altar of the Penates. Honore = the libation. Gr. 430. 
A. & S. 257. — 180. Prolem ambiguam = the ambiguous (be- 
cause capable of being referred to either source) lineage. Geminos 
parentes; Dardanus and Teucer. — 181. Se — locorum = that 
he had been misled by a mistake of a late day (novo) relative to an- 
cient localities. — 182. Exercite = harassed. — 183. Casus = for- 
tunes : explained by what follows. — 184. Portendere ; sc. earn. 
Debita ; sc. fato. — 185. Vocare = named. — 187. Crederet 
Gr. 486. 4. A. & S. 260, R. 2. Who would have thought so in those 
days ? Cassandra. See on II. 246. — 190. Quoque ; i. e. as well 
as the one in Thrace. Paucis relictis ; apparently introduced to 
account for the Pergamum or Pergamia, of a later day, as one of the 
cities of Crete. See v. 133. — 191. Trabe = ship, as often. Aequor. 
Gr. 371. 3. A. & S. 232 (2). Cf. V. 235. — 192. Nee jam amplius 
= and no longer. — 193. Apparent belongs to coelum et pontics as 
well as to terrae. — 194. Imber = a rain-cloud. — 195. Inhorruit 

— tenebris == the wave became ruffled amid the darkness. Gr. 414 
and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. The picture seems to be of the surface 
of the water roughened or curled, partly by the wind, partly by the 
darkness, which would change its outline to the eye. — 196. Venti 

— mare. Cf. I. 86. Magna; with surgiint. —198. Involvere — 
abstulit. Cf. I. 88. —199. Ingeminant = repeatedly flash. —200. 
Caecis = dark and unknown. — 201. Negat discernere = dicit 
se non discernere ; i. e. he cannot tell whether it is day or night. Gr. 
545. 2. 1). A. & S. 239, R. 2. — 202. Nee is used as if non dicit 
had preceded instead of negat. Meminisse = scire. Palinurus ; 
Aeneas's pilot. — 203. Tres adeo . . . soles = three long days. 
Adeo strengthens tres. — Caeca caligine = by blinding darkness : 
join with inccrtos. — 206. Aperire = to disclose. Volvere fu- 



584 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

mum == to roll up the smoke ; a sign of an inhabited country. — 
208. Caerula — the azure deep. Gr. 441. A. & S. 205, R. 7 (2). — 
210. Strophades . . . insulae, two small islands in the Ionian sea, 
west of the Peloponnesus and due south from the eastern extremity 
of Zacynthus. — 211. Ionio ; sc. mart. For the rhythm of this 
verse cf. G. I. 437. — 212. Harpyiae (lit. Plunderers); fabulous 
winged monsters, three in number, Celaeno, Aello, and Ocypete, 
daughters of Neptune and Terra. They were sent by Juno to plun- 
der the tables of Phineus, king of Thrace, whence they were driven 
by Zetes and Calais, the sons of Boreas, to the Strophades, where 
Aeneas found them. The word is a trisyllable. — 213. Mensas 
metu . . . priores = their former tables through fear ; i. e. of the 
sons of Boreas. — 215. Pestis et ira = plague and scourge. — 
220. Laeta = fat. — 221. Custode. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257, R. 7 
{a). See on II. 409. That these animals were sacred to the Har- 
pies is clear from v. 247 ; hence, as was usual with animals conse- 
crated to the gods, they were left to feed at large without a keeper. — 

222. Ferro. See on II. 409. Vocamus ; i. e. we promise to offer 
up to them, if successful, a portion of the booty which we take. — 

223. Partem praedamque ; for partem praedae. See on I. 61. — 

224. Exstruimus toros ; i. e. they pile up turf to recline on while 
eating. Dapibus. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 245. II. 4. — 225. 
Lapsu. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 226. Clangoribus 
may refer to the flapping of their wings or to their discordant cries. 

— 229, 230. Cf. I. 310, 311. — 231. Reponimus is to be under- 
stood of a second sacrifice, the first being implied, if not actually ex- 
pressed, in v. 222. — 232. Diverso = diver sa parte. Gr. 441. A. & S. 
205, R. 9. — 234. Capessant. Gr. 530. II. 3. 2). A. & S. 266, 2, 
R. 1 [b). — 235. Gerendum. Gr. 530. I. A. & S. 266. 2.-236, 
237. Tectos . . . latentia ; proleptic ; i. e. disponunt ( = place here 
and there), ut tegantur . . . ita condtcnt, ut lateant. Ergo . . . delap- 
sae ; referring to a third visitation : the second came to an end, v. 
234.-239. Misenus. See on VI. 164, 165. —240. Aere. Gr. 
705. III. A. & S. 324. 3. — 241. Obscenas. See on G. I. 470. 
Foedare. Gr. 553. II. A. & S. 204. Pelagi . . . volucres ; refer- 
ring to the mythological origin of the Harpies from Neptune, or Elec- 
tra, daughter of Oceanus. — 242. Vim = mark of. violence. Tergo 
= corpore. — 243. Sub sidera = up to the stars ; i. e. high in air. 

— 246. Infelix. See on II. 245. Rumpit = utters, gives vent to. 
Cf. II. 229. — 247. Etiam; i. e. in addition to the slaughter of the 
cattle. Celaeno asks whether they are going so far as to wage war 
in defence of their right to the cattle which they have so unjustly 
slaughtered. — 248. Laomedontiadae ; a term of reproach, like 
Laomedonteae Trojae y G. I. 502, on which see note. — 249. Patrio 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 585 

seems used loosel) for proprio, as in G. I. 52, and = their own ; i. e. 
as having been assigned to them by the gods. — 250. Animis goes 
with accipite, as in V. 304, not with figite, though the word may be 
supplied in the second clause. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 252. Fu- 
riarum . . . maxima ; sc. natu. Cf. VI. 605. Virg. identifies or 
confuses the Harpies with the Furies. See on G. I. 278. — 253. 
Cursu petitis. See on I. 157 ; II. 399. Celaeno shows them that 
she knows the present, that they may believe her prophecy of the 
future. Ventis vocatis. Wr. makes it = duly invoked, and there- 
fore favorable ; but it need mean nothing more than " the winds shall 
come at your call " ; as, if any stress were laid on due invocation, 
Celaeno would be inadvertently giving profitable advice where she in- 
tends only to terrify. Cf. IV. 223; V. 211. — 255. Datam = as- 
signed ; i. e. by destiny. Cf. v. 501 ; IV. 225. — 256. Dira = mon- 
strous, intense. See on G. 1. 37. Injuria ; the wrong being regarded 
as having the power of avenging itself Caedis ; since the Trojans 
were murderers in will if not in deed. — 257. Ambesas . . . absu- 
mere. See on jactatos . . . arcebat, I. 29. So v. 267. Subigat. The 
subj. is used as if the Trojans would be anxious to anticipate the vis- 
itation by establishing themselves in their city. Gr. 523. II. A. & S. 
263. 3. Malis ; with absumere. — 260. Deriguit = froze. Nee 
jam amplius. See on v. 192. — 261. Jubent = wish. Pacem. 
The peace which they sought by arms was liberty to feed unmolested ; 
that which they seek by prayer is freedom from further annoyance, 
if the Harpies are merely monsters, deliverance from divine ven- 
geance, such as that just denounced, if they are goddesses. 262. 
Sint. Gr. 486, III. A. & S. 259, R. 4 (3); 260. II. — 264. Nu- 
mina magna ; i. e. such as those from whom Celaeno derived her 
knowledge. Honores = sacrifices. — 265. Prohibete minas = 
ward off the threatened curses. — 266. Placidi = appeased. — 267. 
Excussos . . . laxare rudentes = to uncoil and let out the ropes. 
The rudentes here are the ropes fastened to the bottom of the sail at 
its two corners (pedes). Before setting sail, these ropes, which our 
seamen call the " sheets," would lie in a coil or bundle. In order, 
therefore, to depart, the first thing was to unroll or untie them, the 
next to adjust them according to the direction of the wind and the 
course of the ship. Laxate rudentes was equivalent to " ease the 
sheets." — 269. Vocabat. Gr. 463. 3. A. & S. 209, N. 9. — 270. 
Zacynthos and the other localities here mentioned are the Ionian 
islands, which lie off the west coast of Greece. Saxis. Gr. 414 and 
2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 272. Laertia regna. Laertes was the 
father of Ulysses. — 273. Terram altricem = the land that nursed. 
— 274. Leucatae ; a promontory at the southern extremity of the 
island Leucadia. — 275. Et — Apollo = and (having passed Leuca- 



586 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

dia) Apollo, dreaded by sailors, comes into sight. See on Hor. C. S. 
33. — 276. Urbi ; the town of Actium, off which Augustus gained 
his famous naval victory over Antonius. 

278. Insperata is explained by vv. 282, 283. — 279. Lustramur. 
See on II. 383. The purification was doubtless required by their 
recent adventure with the Harpies. Jovi = in honor of Jupiter. 
Votis = with votive offerings. — 280. Celebramus litora ludis; 
a variety for celebramus ludos in litore, celebrate having its strict sense 
of " to make populous." — 281. Patrias . . . palaestras = the gym- 
nastic exercises of their country. Palaestra, properly the game of 
wrestling, is given as a specimen of the whole, which is perhaps the 
force of the plural. Oleo labente ; i. e. the oil with which they 
were anointed trickled down their bodies as they performed their 
exercises. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257. — 282. Evasisse. See on II. 
731. — 284. Circumvolvitur. See on II. 383. Annum. Gr. 371. 
4. A. & S. 233 (2). — 286. Abantis. Of this Abas nothing is cer- 
tainly known. — 287. Postibus adversis ; i. e. that face one as he 
approaches the temple. Shields and other armor were often hung 
up in temples as votive offerings. Rem = the act. — 288. Aeneas ; 
sc. dicavit or fixit from preceding verse. See on E. VII. 30. De 
(sc. detracta) = (taken) from. — 291. Aerias Fhaeacum . . . arces 
are the mountains of Corcyra, whose inhabitants were called Phaeaces 
from its early name Phaeacia. — 292. Portu. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. 
— 293. Ckaonio. See on E. IX. 13. Buthroti ; a seaport town 
of Epirus. Gr. 396. V. A. & S. 211, R. 2, N. — 295. Helenum. 
Helenus, a son of Priam, had been taken prisoner by Ulysses, and 
conveyed to Epirus by Pyrrhus, son of Achilles, the king of Epirus, 
who had married Andromache, Hector's widow. Helenus succeeded 
him both in marriage and in his kingdom. — 296. Conjugio. See 
on II. 579. Aeacidae. See on E. IV. 36. — 297. Patrio ; as being 
an Asiatic, Andromache being the daughter of Eetion, king of the 
Cilician Thebe. Cessisse = had passed to. — 298. Amore com- 
pellare. See on II. 10. — 301. Sollemnes dapes = the annual 
sacrificial feast. Quum = at the time when. — 302. Falsi See 
on I. 716. Love of country had prompted them to give Trojan names 
to the various objects about them. The early settlers of America 
furnish a fine illustration of the same feeling. — 304. Hectoreum. 
See on II. 543. Viridi — inanem = which of green turf, an empty 
(one) ; i. e. a cenotaph. Viridi caespite describes quem. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 2ii, R. 6. Geminas. See on v. 63. Caussam lacrimis 
= an occasion for tears. Caussa is generally found in Virg. with a 
gen. ; but IV. 290 will help us to understand the construction, show- 
ing that caussam lacrimis is only an abbreviated form for quae catissa 
lacrimis esset ; so that the dat. will really come under Gr. 390 and 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 587 

2. A. & S. 227 and R. 4. — 309. Labitur ; i. e. f aints. Longo . . . 
tempore. Cf. E. I. 30. — 311. Alma = genial. — 314. Subjicio 
= I reply. Turbatus = agitated. Raris . . . vocibus hisco = I 

open my mouth in broken accents. Hisco is used of opening the 
mouth without full articulation. — 318. Excipit. See on G. II. 
345 ; A. I. 276. Here there seems to be an actual reference to the 
metaphor in dejectam. — 318. Digna satis is illustrated by what 
goes before, and explained by what follows. — 319. Hectoris An- 
dromachen = Hector's Andromache. Gr. 395 ; 397, 1 and (1). 
A. & S. 211 and R. 7 (1). There is no need of supposing an ellipsis. 
Pyrrhin' — servas ; i. e. art thou still the wife (concubine) of Pyrr- 
hus ? He wishes to know whether the report he has heard (vv. 294- 
297) is false. Gr. 669, I. 3 ; 703. 3. A. & S. 322. 7. — 321. Felix 

— alias ; doubly happy, because she died a virgin and in her native 
land. The allusion is to Polyxena, a daughter of Priam, who was 
sacrificed by Pyrrhus at the tomb of Achilles (hostilem ad tnmidum), 
who had sought her in marriage. — 323. Sortitus. It was custom- 
ary to divide the captives by lot. Pertulit. For the indie, where 
we might have expected the subj. see on G. II. 460. — 324. Captiva. 
Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. — 325. Nos. Gr. 446 and 2. A. & S. 209, 
R. 1 {b) and R. 7 {b). Patria ; of Troy. Cf. V. 624. It may be the 
abl. of place, or, more naturally, the abl. abs. Diversa. See on v. 4. 

— 326. Stirpis Achilleae ; Pyrrhus. — 327. Servitio enixae = 
having borne children in slavery. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. 
The phrase defines tidimits. — 328. Hermionen ; the daughter of 
Menelaus and Helena, and the granddaughter of Leda. — 329. Me 

— habendam = made over to Helenus, his slave, me, a slave too 
(que), to be possessed (by him). — 330. Ereptae . . . conjugis = 
for his wife who had been torn from (him) ; i. e. by Pyrrhus, to whom 
Hermione had been betrothed by her father during the siege of Troy, 
and who on his return had claimed and married her. — 331. Scele- 
rum — agitatus = driven mad by the Furies (i. e. the avengers) of 
his crimes. He had murdered his mother Clytaemnestra. Orestes ; 
the son of Agamemnon. — 332. Excipit. See on E. III. 18. Pa- 
trias . . . aras ; i. e. at Delphi, where an altar had been raised in 
honor of Achilles. — 333. Morte. Gr. 426 and 1. A. & S. 253 and 
N. 1. Reddita = having been given up. Serv. sa) T s that Helenus 
had won the gratitude of his master by giving him profitable advice 
in respect to the voyage on his way home from Troy. Cessit. See 
on v. 297. — 334. Cognomine. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 335. 
Chaone ; a brother of Helenus. — 336. Iliacam . . . hanc . . . 
arcem ; epexegetical of Pergama. See on Lavinaque litora, I. 2. 
Jugis = to the mountain-tops. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 337, 338. 
How did you come ? by stress of weather (venti) ? or by destiny 



5 88 



NOTES ON VIRGIL. 



(fata) ? or by divine intervention (deus) ? que having virtually the 
force of quomodo. See on E. I. 54. — 339. Quid (sc. agit) = how 
fares ? Vescitur. See on I. 546. — 340. Quern — Troja. A 
solitary instance in Virg. of a hemistich where the sense is incom- 
plete. Copyists and commentators have exercised their wits in en- 
deavoring to supply the deficiency ; but it seems hardly wise to at- 
tempt to do what Virg. either did not or could not do. For the sake 
of giving a complete sense to the verse we may translate : " whom 
(Creusa bore) to thee when Troy (was) already (besieged)." — 341. 
Tamen — still ; i. e. in spite of her death : referring to amissae. 
Cura = concern, longing. — 342. Ecquid = at all. Gr. 380. 2. 
A. & S. 232 (3). It is used in impassioned interrogations. — 343. 
Avunculus. Creusa was according to one account Hector's sister. 
— 349. Trojam, etc. See on v. 302. Simulata = made like, 
copied after. Magnis ; sc. Pergamis. — 350. Arentem — scanty. 
Cognomine. Gr. 428 and 2. A. & S. 211, R. 6 (1). — 351. Am- 
plector ; i. e. in token of recognition, as the women in II. 490 em- 
brace the doors in token of farewell. — 353. Porticibus. The. 
porticus seems to have surrounded the aula, which appears to be 
used in Virg. in the case of a palace as equivalent to atrium. See on 

II. 528. Accipiebat = entertained. — 354. Aulai. Gr. 42. 3. 2). 
A. & S. 43. 1. Bacchi. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. — 355. Auro. 
Gr. 705. III. A. & S. 324. 3. Dapibus ; i. e. for the gods ; as in 
v. 301. — 357. Tumido ; because of the effect. — 358. Vatem. 
Helenus. — 359. Qui . . . sentis = who understandest, whose senses 
are alive to. These supernatural facts were as open to Helenus as 
the common facts of sense to ordinary men. — 360. Tripodas . . . 
laurus ; i. e. the indications of the tripods, laurels, etc. Clarii. 
Apollo is so called from his temple at Claros, near Colophon, in 
Ionia. — 361. Volucrum linguas and praepetis omina pennae 
refer to the two modes of divination, from the note and from the 
flight of birds. — 362. Omnem cursum ; i. e. all my future course. 
Prospera . . . religio = favorable prognostics. — 363. Numine = 
by the expression of their will. See on II. 123. — 364. Petere . . . 
tentare. See on v. 134. Repostas = remote. Gr. 703. 2. A. & S. 
322. 4. — 365. Nefas = nefandum. Gr. 570 and 1. A. & S. 276, 

III. R. 2. — 367. Obscenam = revolting ; because it compels to 
eat loathsome and repulsive food. Quae . . . vito. See on v. 88. 
The intervening parenthesis accounts for the direct form of the ques- 
tion. — 368. Fossim. The subj. may be explained as depending on 
sequens (= si sequar). Gr. 503. 2. 1). A. & S. 261, R. 4. — 369. Hie. 
See on I. 728. Primum ; the correlative of deinde, v. 373. — 370. 
Pacem = favor. Cf. VI. 48. — 372. Multo — numine = bewildered 
by thy abounding presence. — 373. Sacerdos. See on dea, I. 412. 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 589 

— 374. Nam refers to the words pauca tibi . . . expediam, v. 377, 
introducing the ground on which Helenus proceeds to make a partial 
revelation of the future, that ground being the manifest truth (mani- 
festo, fides) that Aeneas has undertaken this voyage with the highest 
supernatural sanction (majoribus auspiciis). This accords with what 
Aeneas says in w. 362 foil. Ire. Gr. 549. A. & S. 269. — 375. 
Auspiciis. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. Fides. See on 
II. 309. Sic . . . ordo gives a reason for the preceding clause, sic 
and is being the emphatic words. — 376. Sortitur. Jupiter is sup- 
posed to draw the decrees of fate like lots out of the urn. So, IV. 
614, we have fata Jovis. Volvit vices. The notion seems to be 
that of ordaining the succession of events, being further explained by 
vertitur ordo. See on I. 22. Is — ordo = such a series (of events) 
is moving round, is in process of accomplishment. — 377. Hospita 
= strange. — 378. Ausonio. See on v. 173. — 379. Parcae. 
See on E. IV. 47. — 381. Italiam = the Italy; i. e. that part of 
Italy. — 382. Vicinosque . . . portus ; sc. aijas. — 383. Longa 

— terris = a long impassable way separates far (from thee) by a long 
extent of country (lit. long lands) the Italy, etc. Terris ; abl. of 
cause : it may be the abl. of quality. — 384. Ante ; with qaam, 
v. 387. Trinacria See on I. 196. — 385. Salis. See on I. 35. 
Sal Ausonius is the same as mareTyrrhemtm. See on I. 67. — 386. 
Infernique lacus; Avernus, between Cumae and Puteoli. See 
v. 442. Insula ; supposed to lie near the promontory of Circaeum 
in Latium, a notion which the poet adopts. Circae ; a mythical sor- 
ceress said to have had an earlier residence in Aea, a city or peninsula 
of Colchis ; whence the epithet Aeaeae. — 387. Passis. Gr. 523. II. 
A. & S. 263. 3. Componere includes both the sense of building 
and settling. — 388. Signa ; i. e. the tokens that you have reached 
your destined home. Cf. I. 443. — 389. Tibi; with inventa. Gr. 
388. II. A. & S. 225. II. Secreti = retired, sequestered ; i. e. in a 
sequestered part of its course. — 391. Capitum. Gr. 396. IV. and 1. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 396. Has; as if he were pointing to the east 
coast of Italy in the direction from Epirus. Litoris oram. See on 
G. II. 44—398. Moenia = «r&-.r. Graiis. Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 
225. II. — 399. Narycii . . . Locri See on G. II. 438. —400. 
Sallentinos . . . campos ; the country occupied by the Sallentini, 
in Calabria, the southeastern part of Italy. See on v. 122. Milite. 
See on I. 564. — 401. Lyctius. See on E. V. 72. Meliboei ; 
from Mcliboca, a town in Thessaly, which had been part of the 
dominions of Philoctetes. — 402. Philoctetae; with Pctelia. Philoc- 
tetes, like Idomeneus, was forced to leave his kingdom and settle in 
Italy, where he built Petelia, a small town in Bruttium. Muro. 
See on I. 506. — 403. Quin = moreover. — 405. Velare. See on 



59° NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

II. 707. Comas. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. The covering of the 
head during sacrifice was a distinctively Roman custom, the Greeks 
sacrificing with the head uncovered. — 406. Ne — occurrat. The 
reason given for the precept seems to be that the appearance of an 
enemy, if seen by the worshipper, would be an evil omen, or would 
cause him to break off the sacrifice. — 407. Omina turbet. The 
omens would have been taken before the sacrifice, and anything oc- 
curring during the sacrifice might spoil them. — 409. Casti —pii. — 
411. Rarescent ; of the gradual opening of a passage which at a dis- 
tance appears closed. Claustra = the strait. Pelori ; a promon- 
tory of Sicily, at its northeastern point, where the strait (now 
Messina) is the narrowest, and where were situated Scylla and 
Charybdis. — 412. Laeva . . . tellus ; the left or southern side of 
Sicily, round which Aeneas was to sail longo circuitu, so as to avoid 
the passage between Scylla and Charybdis. — 415. Aevi = temporis. 

— 416. Dissiluisse = leaped asunder. — Protinus . . una = con- 
tinuously one. — 417. Medio. Gr. 422 and 1. A. & S. 254, R; 3. 

— 419. Litore diductas = separated in respect of coast ; i. e. the 
ground on which they stood being no longer continuous, but dis- 
connected. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Aestu. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & 
S. 247 and 2. — 420. Dextrum . . . laevum ; i. e. to those sailing 
north. Scylla . . . Charybdis. See on I. 200. Implacata = 
insatiate. — 421. Irao . . . gurgite = with the lowest whirlpool. Gr. 
414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. Ter; three times a day, as appears 
from Horn. — 422. In abruptum = down to the bottom. Sub 
auras = upwards to the air. — 426. Prima — facies = the upper- 
most part of her form (is that) of a human being. Gr. 401. A. & S. 
211, R. 8 (1). Pectore. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 427. Pube 
tenus = as far as the middle ; explaining prima. Postrema ; sc. 
facies. — 428. Commissa = joined. — 429. Metas lustrare=to 
double the extreme point ; Pachynum being the southern promontory 
of Sicily, which they were to sail round as they would go round a 
goal, of which longos circumflectere cursus is actually used, V. 131. — 
432. Canibus. Canes and lupi are here used indifferently. — 435. 
Pro omnibus = for all ; i. e. as an equivalent for all others. — 436. 
Iterumque iterumque ; better with monebo. — 437. Primum ; 
i. e. as the first thing to do. — 438. Dominam ; of a goddess, v. 1 13. 

— 439. Victor is explained by supera. — 441. Cumaeam . . . ur- 
bem ; a city on the coast of Campania, said to have been settled by a 
colony from Chalcis in the island of Euboea. — 442. Divinos ; either 
because of the residence of the Sibyl in its vicinity or of its supposed 
connection with the infernal regions and their deities. Lacus et 
Averna ; a hendiadys. See on v. 386. Silvis. Gr. 414 and 2. 
A. & S. 247 and 1. — 443. Insanam ; of the prophetic afflatus, like 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 59 1 

furens, II. 345. Vatem; Sibylla. Rupe sub ima; the antrum 
immane of VI. 1 1. — 444. Foliis . . . mandat. Cf. VI. 74. Leaves 
would be among the earliest materials for writing. Notas et nomi- 
na = marks and words : a poetical expression for written characters. 

— 445. Carmina. See on E. IV. 4. — 446. Digerit in nume- 
rum = arranges in order. See on II. 182. Here the notion is that 
of regular succession in order of time. — 447. Locis ; with manent. 

— 448. Eadem = yet ; i. e. though she has written them out and 
left them, she takes no further care of them. Gr. 451. 3. A. & S. 
207, R. 27 (a). Tenuis . . . ventus ; i. e. even so light a breath of 
wind as is caused by the opening of the door. — 452. Inconsulti ; 
i. e. the prophecies being rendered unintelligible by their displace- 
ment, those who come for responses get no counsel. Helenus is giv- 
ing the reason why the oracle is in bad repute. — 453. Tibi. Gr. 
389. A. & S. 228, N. (a). Tanti. Gr. 402, III. and 1. A. & S. 
214 and R. 1. — 456. Quin adeas = as to prevent you from visit- 
ing ; depending upon tanti, instead of the more usual tit non. Gr. 
498 and 1. A. & S. 262, R. 10. 2. Precibus — canat. The order 
is precibusqiie poscas ipsa canat or acuta. — 457. Canat. Gr. 493. 
2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. Volens. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 15. — 
459. Que . . . que = either ... or. See on G II. 87. — 460. 
Dabit. See on v. 85. Venerata = duly besought. — 461. Li- 
ceat. Cf. v. 379. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264. 1 {b). —462. Vade 
age = go quickly, haste away. Ingentem ; proleptic. — 464. Gra- 
via. See on v. 91. — 465. Stipat — argentum. See on I. 195. — 
466. Dodonaeos. See on E. IX. 13. Dodona belonged to the 
kingdom of Helenus. Lebetas. It is said that these were brazen 
kettles used by the priests in Dodona for the purpose of predicting 
future events from the sounds returned by them when struck. — 467. 
Loricam — trilicem; i. e. a coat of mail made of metal plates fas- 
tened together with small chains, the chains being three-ply and of 
gold. Join hamis with consertam, and auro with trilicem. — 468. 
Conum — comantes ; for galeam insignem cono cristisque comanti- 
bus. — 469. Sua. See on I. 461. — 470. Duces = guides ; i. e. 
for the voyage. — 471. Remigium may be equipments for rowing or 
rowers, either sense suiting the passage equally well. — 472. Jube- 
bat Anchises. Cf. v. 9. — 473. Ferenti = when favoring; lit. 
bearing (us on our way). — 475. Dignate. Gr. 221. 2. A. & S. 162. 
17 (a).— 476. Bis. See on II. 642.-477. Tibi. Gr. 381. 3. 3). 
A. & S. 228. 3. Helenus points to the coast of Italy in the direction 
of Epirus : in this verse, however, he is thinking of Italy generally ; 
in the next hanc is specially used of that particular part which lies 
nearest. — 478. Tamen ; as if he were correcting himself. For the 
sense see vv. 396 foil. Praeterlabare. Gr. 496. 1. A. & S. 262, 



592 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

R. 4. — 480. Quid — provehor ; i. e. why do I say more ? — 481= 
Demoror. See on II. 647. — 484. Ascanio belongs to the preced- 
ing clause as well as to the one in which it stands. Nee cedit 
honori. Scarcely any two commentators have agreed in respect to 
the meaning of these words. Serv. supposes it to be, that Androm- 
ache does not yield to the honor of Ascanius, does not give him less 
than his due. Heyne, that Andromache does not yield to the lib- 
erality of her husband. Wr., that chlamys is the subject of cedit: the 
mantle does not yield to the beauty of the other robes. Others have 
adopted honore. Con. suggests another rendering, which, though quite 
different from all the rest, we have after some hesitation decided 
to adopt : " nor does she flag in the work of honoring him " ; i. e. 
give way to honor, as if she were contending with it, — a poetical 
equivalent for the prosaic nee cessat honorare. He thinks the inter- 
pretation admissible in itself and suited to the context (cf. onerat in 
next line). — 486. Et haec is to be explained with reference to 
the gifts of Helenus to Anchises. — 487. Sint . . . testentur. Gr. 
500. A. & S. 264. 5. Longum; an epithet of amorem, yet to be 
closely connected with testentur. — 488. Hectoreae. See on II« 
543. Tuorum = of thy kinsfolk. — 489. Mihi limits super which 
is here = quae superes. Sola . . . super = sole surviving. — 490. 
Ferebat ; of ordinary movement. — 491. Pubesceret = he would 
have been blooming into youth. Aevo. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 
247 and 2. — 495. Parta. See on II. 784. — 497. Xanthi. See on 
v. 302. — 499. Auspiciis. Gr. 430. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). Fuerit 
— obvia = will have been less exposed. Its finished foundation, it 
is hoped, will be less in danger than that of ancient Troy. — 500. 
Thybridis. Gr. 399. 3 and 3). A. & S. 222, R. 2 (a). — 501. Data 
See on v. 255. — 502. Cognatas = kindred. Olim; with faciemus. 
Propinquos = neighboring. — 503. Epiro, Hesperia. Gr. 422 
and 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 504. Casus = fortune. Utramque ; 
referring to cognatas urbes. Gr. 363. A. & S. 404. — 505. Trojam 
. . . urbes. Gr. 373. A. & S. 230. Animis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 
250. 1. Maneat. Gr. 487. A. & S. 260, R. 6. 

506. Pelago. See on II. 179. Vicina; i.e. to Buthrotum. — 
507. Italiam. Gr. 379. 4. A. & S. 235, R. 5 (c). Undis; with 
both iter and cursus. The distance is about fifty miles. — 508. Opaci 
belongs closely to umbrantur. — 509. Sternimur. See on II. 
383. — 510. Sortiti remos = having cast lots for the oars ; i. e. to 
determine who should constitute the rowing crew for the early morn- 
ing start. — 511. Corpora curamus ; referring to the evening re- 
freshment, and including bathing as well as eating. Irrigat = be- 
dews ; i. e. invigorates. — 512. Orbem = circuit. It was not yet 
midnight. — 514. Auribus — captat = catches the air with his 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 593 

ears ; i. e. listens for a gale. — 516. Arcturum, etc. See on I. 744. 

— 517. Oriona. See on I. 535. Gr. 612. 5. A. & S. 287. Ex. in 0, 
2. — 518. Constare = are uniform, are settled. — 519. Clarum 
. . . signum ; i. e. by a blast of the trumpet. Castra movemus ; 
metaphorically, the military image being suggested by the trumpet. — 
520. Tentamus ; of an unknown sea, as in E. IV. 32. — 525. Co- 
rona. See on G. II. 528. — 528. Maris, etc. ; with potentes. — 529. 
Vento. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. — 530. Crebrescunt 
. . . patescit. Gr. 332. II. A. & S. 187. II. 2. The harbor was 
called porhis Veneris, the place Castrum Minervae. — 531. Arce = 
on a height. — 533. Curvatus in arcum. The action of the east 
wind on the water is said to have hollowed out the harbor. — 534. 
Objectae = opposite. — 535. Ipse; sc. portus. Latet is not in- 
consistent with patescit v. '530. The harbor is retired and in fact con- 
cealed between the rocks (cantes) on each side of it ; but as the ships 
approach a way is seen between the barriers. Aeneas is giving a 
general account of the haven, not describing its features as they broke 
upon him gradually. Gemino . . . muro. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 
247 and 2. Brachia and muro are two metaphors to express the 
same thing, the rocks which form the two sides of the haven. — 536. 
Turriti ; to be understood metaphorically, crowned as with towers. 
Refugit. The eminence on which the temple is placed slopes down- 
wards, so that, as the ships approach, the building appears to recede. 

— 537. Omen; the first object which meets us, regarded conse- 
quently as an omen. Cf. I. 442 foil. — 538. Candore. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 539. Hospita. See on v. 377. Portas ; as of 
a messenger : yours is a message of war. — 540. Bello. See on II. 
315. — Armenta. See on I. 185. — 541. Olim is used generally, 
and = at times. Curru. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 542. Jugo. Gr. 
414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. Horses are yoked together and are 
thus made jointly amenable to the bit. The concord thus produced 
is a symbol of peace, besides conducing to peaceful arts, such as 
ploughing. — 544. Prima ; because the temple of Pallas was first 
seen by them as they approached the Italian coast. — 545. Vela- 
mur. See on v. 405. — 546. Praeceptis. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
249. II. Maxima = as the greatest ; i. e. on which he had insisted 
most. Cf. 433 foil. — 547. Argivae intimates the reason why Juno 
is to be propitiated, as the patroness of the enemies of Troy. — 548. 
Ordine = rite. — 549. Obvertimus = we turn about, direct ; i. e. 
to adapt the sail to the direction of the wind. — 550. Grajugenum. 
Cf. v. 398. — 551. Hinc; of time, = then. Si — fama; i. e. that 
Hercules founded Tarentum (now Taranto). These words may be 
meant to point to the fact that there were other and opposing legends. 

— 552. Diva Lacuna = the Lacinian goddess ; referring to the 

38 



594 



NOTES ON VIRGIL. 



temple of Juno on the Lacinian promontory, some pillars of which 
are still standing, and give the spot its modern name, Capo delle Co- 
lonne, or Cape Colonna. The deity for the temple, as in v. 275. 
Contra ; i. e. on the opposite shore of the Sinus Tarentinus (now 
Gulf of Taranto). — 553. Caulonis ; a coast town of Bruttium. 
Arces ; whether rocks or towers it is not easy to say. Scylaceum ; 
a town on the Sinus Scylleticus, about twenty miles north of Caulon. 
The shore about Scylaceum is said not to be rocky, so that the epi- 
thet refers to the gales which blow about that part of Italy. — 554. 
E fluctu = rising out of the water. — 556. Construe fractas voces 
ad litora, not voces fractas ad litora ; there were at the shore broken 
sounds ; i. e. caused by the breaking of the waves. — 557. With the 
former part of the line cf. I. 126, with the latter, I. 107. Aestu. Gr. 
414 and 4. A. & S. 245. II. 2. — 558. Haec ilia. Gr. 450 and 1. 
A. & S. 207, R. 23 (a). Charybdis. See on I. 200.— 560. Eri* 
pite; sc. vos. Cf. II. 289. — 561. Rudentem; of the sound of 
the prow in the water. — 563. Ventis remisque, or veils remisque^ 
is a regular phrase for using every effort. — 565. Ad Manes imos 
of extreme depth, like in Tartara, G. II. 292. See on G. I. 243 
Desedimus = we have sunk. See on G. I. 330. — 566. Cava 
saxa are the rocks at the bottom of the sea, opposed to rorantia as 
tra. Cf. vv. 421 foil. — 569. Cyclopum. See on G. I. 471. — 
571. Ruinis = eruptions. See on G. II. 308. — 573. Turbine . . , 
piceo = with a pitchy whirl ; i. e. with a whirl of pitchy blackness. Gr 
414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 574. Globos flammarum. Cf. G. I 
473. — 576. Sub auras . . . glomerat = rolls up to the air. — 578, 
Enceladi; a hundred-handed giant, son of Tartarus and Terra. In 
the war between the gods and the giants he was overthrown by Jupi 
ter and buried under Mount Aetna. Semiustum. Gr. 669. II. 3 
A. & S. 306. 1. (3). —579. Insuper. See on I. 61. — 580. Rup. 
tis . . . caminis = from (its) broken passages ; the flames proceed 
ing from him burst their way through the sides of the mountain 
Flammam. See on I; 44. — 581. Mutet. Gr. 529. A. & S. 266, 
2. — 583. Noctem. Gr. 378. A. & S. 236. Monstra = prodi 
gies, frightful phenomena. — 585. Neque . . . nee. The two clauses, 
in Virgil's usual manner, mean the same thing. Aethra siderea 
= with starry splendor. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 586. 
Nubila ; sc. erant. — 587. Intempesta = blackest ; because unfit 
for action ; lit. unseasonable. — 588. Eoo. See on G. I. 288. Gr. 
426. A. & S. 253. — 590. Macie . . . suprema = to the last de- 
gree of leanness. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 591. Cultu 
= in dress. — 593. Respicimus. The Trojans were apparently 
turned towards the sea, attending to their ships, at the time the stran- 
ger approached. — 594. Cetera. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 234. II. R. 3. 




THE AENEID. BOOK III. 595 

— 595. Ht = et quidem. — 599. Testor = <?m — 600. Lumen; 

for aera. Light is identified with air in G. II. 340. — 602. Scio = I 
admit. E classibus = e militibus in classe profectis. — 604. Sce- 
leris . . . injuria nostri. Cf. nostrae injuria caedis, v. 256. — 605. 
Spargite — fluctus is explained by IV. 600. — 607. Genibus; 
with volutans. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 608. Qui sit. See 
on E. I. 19. Pari . . . fateri. See on v. 134. — 609. Deinde ; 
with fateri. Deinde is sometimes used by Virgil out of its place. See 
on I. 195. Agitet = is persecuting (him) : his present condition be- 
ing the more prominent object of curiosity. — 611. Praesenti ; i. e. 
taking effect at once, like praesens pecunia, ready money. — 612. Cf. 
II. 76, though its genuineness there is doubtful. — 613. Ulixi. See 
on I. 30. — 614. Nomine. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Genitore. 
Gr. 430. A. & S. 257, R. 7(a). — 615. Paupere. Poverty, as in the 
case of Sinon, II. 87, is the reason why the soldier's calling is chosen. 
Mansisset — fortuna ; i. e. would that I had been content with my 
lot and stayed at home. — 614. Hie ; followed by in antro epexegeti- 
cally. See on E. I. 54. — 617. Cyclopis ; i. e. Polyphemus. — 618. 
Domus — cruentis = (his) abode of gore and of bloody feasts. Gr. 
428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. The absence of the adjective with sanie is 
very unusual and harsh. — 620. Di — pestem. Cf. v. 265. — 621. 
Nee — ulli = no one can either look upon or address him in speech 
without terror. Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 225. II. — 623. Vidi ego- 
met. Cf. II. 499. — 624. Resupinus = lying on his back. — 625. 
Exspersa natarent = were splashed and swimming with blood. — 
629. Ve, for nee. See on v. 43. Sui ; i. e. of his craftiness. Gr. 
406. II. A. & S. 216. Ithacus, when applied by Virg. to Ulysses, 
implies cunning. See on II. 104. — 630. Simul; sc. ac. — 631. 
Per = throughout ; with reference to bis enormous length. — 633. 
Mero. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 245. II. 2. — 634. Sortiti vices 
= having cast lots for our parts ; i. e. for the part each was to take. — 
635. Telo ; i. e. a stake. — 637. Argolici clipei; which was round 
and protected the whole body. Phoebeae lampadis; i. e. the 
disc of the sun. Instar. Gr. 128. 1) ; 363. A. & S. 94; 204. The 
point of comparison lies in the fact that the objects were huge, round, 
and glaring. — 642. The whole line is a poetical synonyme for est. — 
643. Vxdgo= passim. — 645. Tertia — complent; the moon is 
filling with fight, or is increasing, for the third time ; i. e. the third 
month is already passing. — 646. Quum = since ; of time. Deserta 
= forsaken, unfrequented, i. e. by men. — 647. Ab rupe . . . pro- 
spicio = I descry from a rock. — 649. Infelicem = miserable. Cf. 
E. V. 37. Corna. See on G. II. 34. — 650. Vulsis radicibus = 
torn up by the roots ; lit. the roots having been torn up. — 651. Pri- 
mum ; almost = tandem. See on E. 1. 45. — 652. Fuisset. See on 



596 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

II. 94. — 653. Addixi expresses total surrender, and so prepares 
us for the language of self-abandonment which follows. — 656. 
Vasta . . . mole = with his vast bulk. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 
247 and 2. Some make it an abl. of quality. — 657. Nota shows 
how he made his way in spite of his blindness. — 658 Cui. Gr. 
386. A. & S. 224, R. 2. In this verse mark the adaptation of the 
sound and movement to the idea. Gr. 672. 2. A. & S. 310. 2. — 659. 
Manu ; with regit. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. — 660. Ea. 
Gr. 445. 4. A. & S. 206 (8). — 662. Altos — fluctus ... ad — 
venit. Gr. 704. IV. 2. A. & S. 323. 4 (2). — 668. Inde; i. e. de 
fluctibiis, with water taken from the sea. — 664. Dentibus. Gr. 
414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. Gemitu. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 
247 and 2. — 666. Celerare. Gr. 545. 1. A. & S. 209, R. 5. Re- 
cepto supplice. Gr. 431.' A. & S. 257. — 667. Sic merito = 
since he had so deserved ; i. e. to be received. Merito is a part, not 
an adj. — 668. Proni; of the action of rowing. — 670. Affectare 
= to seize, grasp. See on tegere, G. I. 213. — 671. Potis (est) = 
potest; sc. Polyphemus. Ionios — sequendo ; i. e. he cannot 
move as fast as the waves carry the ship along. Sequendo. Gr. 429. 
A. & S. 250. 1. — 673. Penitus = far within. Exterrita; sc. est. 

— 676. Complent. Gr. 461. A. & S. 209, R. 11 (2). — 677. Ad- 
stantes = standing side by side. Nequidquam ; quia nocere non 
poterant. Lumine. Gr. 428. A. & S. 21 1, R. 6. — 678. Aetnaeos ; 
merely a local epithet. Coelo. See on II. 186. Capita — ferentes. 
Cf. I. 189. — 679. Quales quum = as when; lit. (such) as (are) 
oaks, etc., when (they). Vertice celso = ona high mountain-top. 

— 681. Constiterunt = stand together ; an aoristic present, there 
being no definite time in comparisons. — Silva — Jovis is the quercus, 
as being sacred to Jupiter ; lucus Dianae the cyparissi, as being sacred 
to Diana, she being regarded as an infernal goddess. — 682. Acer. 
See on I. 362. Quocumque = for any quarter, any direction what- 
ever. Rudentes excutere. See on v. 267. — 683. Ventis . . . 
secundis = to following winds ; i. e. to sail before the wind, which- 
ever way it blew. It would seem from the context that it must have 
been blowing at the time from the south, and carrying them directly 
on to Scylla and Charybdis, from which (vv. 561 foil.) they had turned 
away in terror. — 684-686. Contra — retro = on the other hand, 
the injunctions of Helenus warn them (socios) not to hold on their 
course between Scylla and Charybdis — the passage on each side 
{utramque) being a hairbreadth remove from death; (so) it is re- 
solved to sail back again ; i. e. toward the south and the Cyclopes 
from which they were fleeing, as being the less of two evils. Just 
then the north wind sprung up and carried them into safety. On 

-inter see on G. II. 345. Utramque viam; in apposition with 



THE AENEID. BOOK III. 597 

curstcs, or better perhaps a sort of cognate ace. expressing the effect 
of teneant curstis. Ni ; for ne, as it is occasionally found elsewhere. 
Discrimine parvo ; an abl. of quality or characteristic after viam. 
The whole passage is difficult, has puzzled all the commentators, and 
has been rejected by some as an interpolation. — 687. Ab sede 
Pelori. See on v. 411. The places off which winds blew were called 
by the poets their homes. — 688. Missus ; i. e. by the favor of the 
gods. Saxo. See on I. 166, 167. — 689. Pantagiae ; a small river 
of Sicily, whose mouth is enclosed with rocks, which form a natural 
harbor. Megaros = of Megara : a small gulf a little north of Syra- 
cuse. Thapsum; a town of Sicily, on a peninsula of the same 
name, enclosing the gulf of Megara on the south side. — 690. Re- 
legens — litora = coasting backward again the shores passed by 
in his wanderings ; i. e. under Ulysses, with whom he is supposed to 
have traced the shore in the opposite direction. — 692. Sicanio . . . 
sinu ; which afterwards formed the great harbor of Syracuse. Gr. 386. 
A. & S. 224. — 693. Plemyrium ; a promontory of Sicily, forming 
the south side of the great harbor of Syracuse. — 694. Ortygiam. 
See on Aeneadas, v. 18. It was a small island in the same harbor, in 
which was the celebrated fountain Arethusa. Elidis. See on G. I. 59. 
— 695. Vias ; for viam. — 696. Ore. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 
and 3. Undis. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 697. Jussi; probably by 
Anchises, who throughout the book directs the religious observances 
of the Trojans. — 698. Exsupero. Cf. superare, I. 244. Helori ; 
a small river of Sicily, south of Syracuse, which overflowed its banks 
at certain seasons ; hence the epithet stagiiantis. — 699. Pacityni. 
See on v. 429. — 700. Fatis = by the oracle ; i. e. of Apollo. — 

701. Camarina ; a lake in the south of Sicily, near a town of the 
same name. The story is that the place was surrounded by a marsh, 
which the inhabitants drained in spite of the oracle, thus making the 
spot accessible to the enemy, who took it. Geloi ; so called from 
Gela, a town in the south of Sicily, named from the river Gelas. — 

702. Immanis = savage, fierce ; referring to the character of the 
tyrants who ruled it. Some construe it with JZztvti. — 703. Acragas ; 
a high mountain on the south shore of Sicily, on which stood the city 
of Agrigentum. Sometimes the city was called Acragas. — 704. 
Magnanimum. Gr. 45. 5. 4). A. & S. 53. Quondam = in after 
times. It seems to be Virgil's remark rather than that of Aeneas. — 
705. Selinus ; a town on the southwestern shore of Sicily, noted 
for its palm-trees. Gr. 73. 5. A. & S. 76, Ex. 6. — 706. Saxis; 
with dura. Lilybeia. Lilybaeum was the western promontory of 
Sicily. — 707. Drepani; a town on the western coast of Sicily, near 
Mount Eryx, where Anchises died. Illaetabilis ; on account of the 
loss of his father. — 714. Labor extremus. He calls it his last 



598 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

agony, losing in his sense of it all recollection of the subsequent ship- 
wreck, which is barely glanced at in the next line. 



THE AENEID. Book IV. 

The subject of the Fourth Book has made it the most attractive, 
perhaps the most celebrated, part of the poem : it has provoked much 
controversy, and that of a kind which has an interest, not only for the 
scholar, but for the general reader ; much of it has been supposed to 
be borrowed from Apollonius Rhodius, whose work happens to be 
preserved : it is the most dramatic portion of the Aeneid, and as such 
may be viewed in relation to the masterpieces of Greek dramatic art. 

According to the most detailed accounts, as epitomized in the Dic- 
tionary of Biography, Dido's early history up to the time of her land- 
ing in Africa coincides substantially with that narrated by Venus to. 
Aeneas in Book I. ; afterwards she is persecuted by her neighbor, 
King Iarbas, who demands her hand, resolves to avoid him by death, 
erects a funeral pile under the pretence of a sacrifice to propitiate her 
former husband, and kills herself there. Virgil turns the loveless 
queen into a passionate lover, keeping, however, the groundwork of 
the character, devotion to the memory of her murdered lord, which 
is only overcome by Venus's express agency, and even then from 
time to time struggles and resists. Iarbas is naturally made to recede 
into the distance ; his anger contributes to darken the prospect of 
Dido's desolation, but is in no sense the motive cause of her death. 
The mode of her death is borrowed from the traditional story, and 
the fact of her resorting to a pretext to conceal her purpose ; but as 
the reason for her death is different, the pretext is different also. In 
filling up the picture which he has sketched Virgil is indebted partly 
to Apollonius, partly perhaps to the Ajax of Sophocles. 

Virgil's power is nowhere more conspicuously shown than in the 
lines describing the horrors which drive Dido to her fatal purpose 
(vv. 450-473). 

ARGUMENT. 

Dido having become violently enamored of Aeneas, consults her 
sister Anna on her circumstances, and by her is advised to consent to 
marriage with the Trojan prince (1 -53). Dido's feelings further de- 
scribed (54-89). Juno consults with Venus : both agree to the union 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 599 

now so much desired by Dido, Juno devising a plan by which to bring 
it about (90- 128). The queen proposes a hunting excursion, which 
accordingly takes place ; but while all are earnest in the pursuit of 
the game, a violent thunder-storm is sent down by Juno, causing the 
hunters to fly in different directions ; Aeneas and Dido, however, ac- 
cidentally take shelter in the same cave (129- 172). Soon after this 
event Jupiter, roused by the remonstrances of Iarbas, sends Mercury 
to Aeneas with an authoritative command to leave Africa and make 
for Italy (173-278), which order the son of Venus prepares to obey 
(279-295). Dido immediately suspects the intentions of Aeneas, 
and expostulates with him, but in vain (296 - 449) ; and, accordingly, 
being unable to bear up against her grief, she determines to die (450 - 
473). Concealing her purpose from her sister, she erects a huge pyre 
and pretends that it is intended for the celebration of magic cere- 
monies, by which she may be enabled to shake off her affection for 
Aeneas and to forget him altogether (474- 521). Her grief now in- 
creases to frenzy ; but by this time Aeneas has weighed anchor, and 
stands out to sea in the middle of the night (522 - 583). In the morn- 
ing Dido, maddened by the sight of the Trojan ships in the distant 
offing, breaks out in a paroxysm of lovesick sorrow, and imprecates 
calamities on her once cherished guest (584-629) ; and having dis- 
missed all her attendants, she slays herself on the pyre (630-705). 

1. At contrasts the restlessness of Dido with the rest of Aeneas 
and the others, III. 718. Cura; of love, as in VI. 444.-2. Vul- 
nus alit. The wound is said to be nourished, as it is kept alive and 
unhealed. So vivit sub pectore vulnus, v. 67. It does not imply volun- 
tary effort. Venis. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. — 3. Multa 
and multus are to be understood as qualifying recursat, so that they 
nearly = saepe. — 4. Gentis honos = the glory of his ancestry ; i. e. 
as descended from Jupiter and Venus. Valor (virtus), high birth 
(gentis honos), personal appearance (vultus), and the charms of con- 
versation (verba), are the four causes exciting Dido to love. — 6. 
Lustrabat = was traversing. — 8. Unanimam = of one heart, af- 
fectionate. Male sana = insana. See on II. 23. — 10. Quis — 
hospes = quis novus hospes (est) hie (qui) successit nostris sedibus. 
Novus = eximius. Successit ; as in I. 627. — 11. Quern — ferens 
= what sort of a personage bearing himself in feature ! Gr. 429. 
A. & S. 250. 1. Quam — armis = of how powerful a breast and 
shoulders ! Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. Armis from armus : gener- 
ally taken from arma = brave deeds ; but Forb. and Con. prefer the 
interpretation here given. Cf. Enid's words in Tennyson : " O noble 
breast and all-puissant arms ! " Dido speaks first of Aeneas's per- 
sonal appearance, afterwards, v. 13, of his prowess. The meaning then 



600 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

will be that Dido can well believe from Aeneas's mien and stature 
that his mother was a goddess. — 12. Nee — fides = nor is my be- 
lief unfounded. Genus = prolem. — 13. Degeneres = ignoble, 
mean. — 14. Exhausta = endured. — 15. Fixum. Gr. 438. 3. 
A. &. S. 205, R. 8 {a). Sederet. See on II. 660. — 17. Primus 
amor; i. e. for Sychaeus. Deceptam fefellit = cheated me by 
death and disappointed (me). See on jactatos arcebat, I. 29. — 18. 
Pertaesum . . . fuisset; sc. me. Gr. 298; 299. A. & S. 184 and 
R. 1. Thalami. Gr. 410. III. and 1. A. & S. 215 (1). — 19. Potui 
expresses that the thing has all but actually taken place. See on G. 
II. 133. Cf. v. 603. Culpae; i.e. she views a second marriage as 
a sin against the memory of Sychaeus. — 20. Fatebor enim. Cf. 
E. I. 32. — 21. Sparsos . . . Penates. Gr. 580. A. & S. 274, R. 5 
{a). Cf. I. 347 foil. — 22. Labantem impulit ; for impulit ut la- 
baret= has impelled to waver. Labantem is proleptic. — 23. Veteris 

— flammae. Cf. I. 721, 722.-24. Optem. Gr. 488. I. A. & S. 
260, R. 6. Ima = to its foundations : join with dehiscat. Dehiscat 
. . . adigat. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 26. Erebi ; a god of 
the lower world for the lower world itself. Profundam = deep ; 
i.e. the night of the lower world. 27. Ante ; a pleonastic repetition 
of prins occasioned by the length of the intervening passage. Jura 
resolvo. Cf. II. 157. — 28. Amores. For the plural see on I. ir. 

— 29. Abstulit ; i. e. has carried them with him to the grave. Cf. 
Moore's line, "Her heart in his grave is lying." — 30. Sinum ; 
Dido's own bosom, not her sister's. 

31. Luce ; i. e. of life. Sorori. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. 

— 32. Solane . . . maerens = pining alone ; i. e. in widowhood. 
Perpetua . . . juventa = all through the springtide of life. Gr. 
378. 1. A. & S. 236. Carpere = wilt thou waste away ? See on 
II. 383. — 33. Natos dulces. Cf. II. 138. Veneris . . . prae- 
mia = the joys of wedded love. — 34. Id ; referring to the leading 
thought of the two preceding verses ; viz. her abstaining from mar- 
riage. Manes . . . sepultos ; the spirit being represented as buried 
because its natural dwelling is underground. — 35. Esto = be it that, 
granted that : its subject is really the sentences which follow. 
Aegram; not the effect of flexere, but expressing the state of sorrow 
and desolation which prevented Dido from entertaining former pro- 
posals of marriage. M.axiti= prod. — 36. Libyae ; the gen. of 
source depending on mariti. Tyro ; abl. of source. Gr. 425 and 3. 
4). A. & S. 246, R. 3. Despectus ; sc. est. larbas. See vv. 196 
foil. — 37. Africa ; names of countries were originally adjectives. 
Triumphis dives ; referring to the constant wars between the va- 
rious tribes. Cf. I. 339. — 38. Amori. Gr. 385 and 5. A. & S. 
223, R. 2. — 40. Gaetulae. The Gaetuli were a barbarous tribe liv- 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 6oi 

ing south of Numidia. Genus. See on I. 339. Bello. See on I. 
339. — 41. Numidae ; i. e. nomads, so called from their wandering 
mode of life. They occupied the territory between Mauritania and 
Carthage, in the modern Algiers. Infreni refers to their habit of 
riding without bridles ; but Virg. probably intended the epithet to 
have a further symbolical application! Perhaps the whole idea may 
be brought out by translating, "unbridled as their own horses." 

— 42. Siti. Gr. 87. II. 3 ; 414 and 2. A. & S. 82, Ex. 2 {a) ; 247 
and 1. — 43. Barcaei ; the inhabitants of Barce, a city of Cyrenaica. 
Tyro. Gr. 421. II. A. & S. 255. 1. — 45. Dis . . . Junoue. Gr. 
431. A. & S. 257, R. 7 {a). — Conjugio. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. — 49. Quantis . . . rebus = quantis opibus. Gr. 414 
and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 50. Tu is often expressed to give force 
to a precept. Posce — veniam ; i. e. to avert the anger portended 
by the ill-omened dreams of v. 9. Sacris litatis = having offered 
propitiatory sacrifices. — 51. Innecte = devise one after another ; 
more lit. string together. — 52. Desaevit = rages furiously; not, 
ceases to rage. Aquosus Orion ; like nimbosus Orion, I. 535. — 
53. Quassataeque rates. Cf. I. 551. Non tractabile. See on 
G. I. 21 1. — 54. His dictis. Gr. 414 and 4. A. & S. 247 and 3. In- 
censum = already on fire. Amore ; with injla??imavit. Gr. 414 and 
2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 55. Solvit pudorem = removes her scru- 
ples : apparently referring back to v. 27. Here it is in thought that 
the restraints of shame are broken. — 56. Per aras ; i. e. going from 
altar to altar. — 57. De more belongs to the whole clause mactant 
lectas bidentes, not exclusively to lectas. Cf. III. 369 ; V. 96. Biden- 
tes = ewes from one to two years old. The sheep, until it is one 
year old, has a set of eight primary or milk teeth : the two central of 
these eight teeth then drop out, and are replaced by the first two 
teeth of the second or permanent set, which being very large and con- 
spicuous among the six remaining milk teeth, the animal at first sight 
appears to have only two teeth ; hence the appellation bidens : lit. 
two-toothed. At the end of the second year, two more ol the milk 
teeth drop, and are replaced by two large permanent teeth, one on 
each side of the first two. The animal is therefore no longer bidens. 

— 58. Cereri. See on G. I. 7. Phoebo. See on E. V. 35. Lyaeo. 
See on Ov. M. XI. 67. — 59. Cui . . . curae. Gr. 390. A. & S. 227. — 
61. Pundit ; sc. pateram ; i. e. the contents of it. The libation was 
preliminary to the sacrifice. — 62. Aut merely distinguishes different 
parts of the same scene. Ora deum. The statues of the gods, 
being in the temple, are supposed to be looking on. So v. 204. 
Pingues aras ; i. e. on which many victims were offered. Cf. v. 201. 

— 63. Instaurat = fills up ; i. e. continually renews the sacrifices 
during the day. — 64. Inhians expresses attentive gazing. Spiran- 



602 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

tia = quivering, palpitating. — 65. Quid. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 
(3). — 66. Est Gr. 291. A. & S. 181. Molles == soft ; i. e. her 
very marrow. — 67. Vivit. See on v. 2. — 69. Urbe. Gr. 422. 1 
and 1). A. & S. 254, R. 2 (b). — 71. Agens telis. Cf. I. 191. 
Volatile ferrum = the winged steel. — 72. Nescius. The archer's 
ignorance accounts for the doe being left to wander alone, bleeding 
to death, while it is itself accounted for by the fact that he is shooting 
among the trees. Fuga. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 73- 
Dictaeos. See on III. 171 ; G. II. 536. — 74. Moenia; for urbem. 
See on II. 234. — 75. Urbem paratam is an appeal to the weari- 
ness of those whose city was yet to be sought. Cf. I. 437, 557 ; III. 
496 foil. — 77. Eadem . . . convivia ; i. e. the banquet of yesterday. 

— 78. Demens ; because a second recital was sure to increase her 
passion. — 79. Ab ore = on the lips. — 80. Digressi ; sc. the 
guests. Cf. III. 482, 492. — 81. Suadent — somnos. Cf. II. 9. 

— 82. Maeret. See on maerens, v. 32. Stratisque relictis ; i. e. 
the couch in the banqueting-hall which Aeneas had left. — 84, 85. 
These lines have been supposed to imply that Ascanius is left behind, 
so that the queen can fondle him after his father has retired. But Virg. 
is not necessarily narrating the events of a single day. The simple 
meaning is, that whenever they are separated, she has him always in 
her mind, and, when she can, solaces herself by the presence of Asca- 
nius. Detinet = holds him long. Cf. I. 670. Infandum. See on 
II. 3. Si — possit = (to see) whether she can beguile. Gr. 525 and 
1. A. & S. 265 ; 198. 11, R. {e). — 86-90. Cf. I. 423 foil., 504 foil. 
Arma — exercet, for exercet se in armis. Cf. III. 281; VI. 642. 
Portus. See on I. 427. Minae — ingentes = the great threaten- 
ing walls. Machina = the military engine. Cf. II. 46, 151, 237. 
Quam. Gr. 453. A. & S. 206 (17). Tali ... peste = by such a 
destructive passion. See on I. 712. — 91. Famam = regard for her 
reputation. — 95. The words are as sarcastic as possible : the triumph 
is of two over one, of gods over a mortal, and that a woman. — 96. 
Adeo. See on E. IV. 11. — 98. Modus = limit ; sc. inimicitiam 
exercendi. Quo — tanto = whither (i. e. with what view) now (will 
you go on) in so great a contest ? — 99. Quin = why not. Factos 
hymenaeos=a marriage contract. — 100. Exercemus = culti- 
vate . . . solemnize : zeugma. — 102. Communem = in common : a 
predicate. Paribus . . . auspiciis = with joint authority. — 103. 
Liceat ; sc. DidonL — 104. Do tales = as a dowry. Tuae. Venus 
is said to receive into her power what Aeneas, her son, receives. — 
105. Olli limits est ingressa. Gr. 186. 3. 1). A. & S. 134, R. I. 
Euim gives the reason why Venus does not speak sincerely : she 
repels craft by craft. Mente. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 
2. — 106. Oras. See on Italiam, I. 2. — 107. Est ingressa = 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 603 

began to speak. — 108. Abnuat . . . malit. Gr. 486. II. A. & 
S. 260, R. 5. — 109. Factum — sequatur = a favorable result 
may attend the scheme. — 110. Fatis — feror = I am borne 
along in uncertainty by the fates. — 111. Velit. Gr. 525 and 1. 
A. & S. 265; 198. 11, R (e). Tyriis Trojaque profectis. 
C£ I. 732. — 114. Excepit = respondit : one speaker taking the 
conversation from another. — 115. Mecum = mens. Iste = that 
of yours ; i. e. that which you speak of. Gr. 450. A. & S. 207, R. 
25. Quod instat = which is in hand; i. e. the present business. 
— 116. Advertite; sc.ammzim. — 117. Venatum. Gr. 569. A. 
& S. 276. II. — 118. Ortus extulerit = shall have brought forth 
his rising : for extulerit se ortu. Titan = Sol ; as being the son of 
Hyperion, one of the Titans. — 120. Nigrantem — grandine = 
black with mingled hail. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 247 and 1. — 121. 
Trepidant alae = the mounted hunters are hurrying hither and 
thither. Saltus. See on G. I. 16. Indagine = with nets, dogs, 
and men : lit. with an encircling. Indago means the process of catch- 
ing wild beasts by stopping up the outlets of the woods with nets, 
men, dogs, etc. — 124. Speluncam. See on I. 365. Adero ; i. e. 
as the goddess of marriage. Tua — voluntas = if I may rely on 
your compliance : lit. if your compliance (shall be) reliable to me : 
certa being predicate. — 126. Cf. I. 73 and note. — 127. Hie ; the 
adverb. Hymenaeus ; the god of marriage. Petenti ; better with 
admiit. — 128. Dolis . . . repertis ; of Juno's craft discovered by 
Venus. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. —130. Portis. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 
255, R. 3 {b). Jubare (sc. solis) = the light (of the sun). — 131. 
Retia rara . . . plagae. See on Hor. Ep. II. 33. Ferro. See on 

I. 313. — 132. Massyli; a people of eastern Numidia, here put for 
Afri. Ruunt properly applies only to the horsemen and the dogs, 
but the hunting apparatus is regarded as a part of the cortege, and 
only one verb is used : zeugma. Odora canum vis = the keen- 
scented dogs. — 133. Cunctantem ; i. e. at her toilet. Limina ; 
i. e. of the palace. — 134. Ostro — auro. Gr. 414 and 2. A. & S. 
247 and 1. — 135. Sonipes == the prancing steed. — 137. Chlamy- 
dem circumdata = having thrown a mantle over her. Gr. 374. 7. 
A. & S. 234, R. 1 {a). Limbo. Gr. 428. A. & S. 21 1, R. 6. — 138. 
Nodantur in aurum = are tied into a knot and fastened with gold ; 
i. e. with a gold hair-pin or clasp. In aurum ; on account of the 
common construction, in nod?tm. — 142. Agmina jungit. See on 

II. 267. —143. Lyciam. See on Hor. C. III. 4. 64. —144. Delum 
maternam. See on III. 73. — 145. Instaurat is here used of the 
renewal of intermitted observances. See on III. 63. Choros. See 
on I. 499. — 146. Cretes ; the inhabitants of the island of Crete. 
Dryopes ; a people who lived in the neighborhood of Parnasus. 



604 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

Agathyrsi; the neighbors of the Geloni. See on G. II. 115. They 
represent Apollo's Hyperborean worshippers. — 147. Cynthi. See 
on 1. 498. — 148. Fronde ; i. e. of laurel, which was sacred to Apollo. 
Premit . . . fingens. The notion is that of restraint and regulation. 
Implicat auro = entwines (it) with a circlet of gold. — 149. Haud 
. . . segnior = with no less active grace : lit. not more sluggish. — 
150. Tantum ; i. e. quantum Apollonis. Ore. Gr. 425. A. & S< 
242. — 151. Lustra = forests. — 152. Dejectae = dislodged ; i. e. 
by the hunters. — 153. Jugis = from the heights. — 154. Trans- 
mittunt cursu = run across : lit. send (themselves) across by run- 
ning. Agmina . . . pulverulenta — glomerant = gather them- 
selves, as they flee, into dust-covered herds. — 157. Cursu. Gr. 414 
and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. So cursu, v. 154, and fuga, v. 155. — 158. 
Spumantem . . . aprum. Cf. I. 324. Dari refers to votis optat : 
granted in answer to prayer. Inertia. See on II. 364 Votis ; with 
optat. Gr. 414 and 3. A. & S. 247 and 2. — 160. Cf. I. 124. — 161. 
Grandine. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 162. Passim = dispersedly. 
— 164. Tecta = places of shelter. —165. Cf. v. 124 — 166. Prima; 
as the oldest of the deities (Henry). Cf. primam deorum Telhcrem, 
VIII. 136. Tellus was one of the deities presiding over marriage. 
— 167. Signum consists, probably, in what follows. Fulsere — 
connubiis = the lightnings and the air witnessing to the nuptials 
flashed. Fulsere ignes et aether =fulsit aether ignibus. — 168. Con- 
nubiis. Gr. 399. 5. I) ; 669. II. 3. A. & S. 213, R. 7 ; 306. I (3). 
Summo — vertice = on the summit of the mountain. Ulularunt. 
This verb is used of triumphal or festive cries, such as doubtless 
greeted the marriage procession. From the imitation of this passage 
by Ovid (Her. 7. 95), it is clear that he supposed the ululatus of the 
nymphs to be a good sign ; and Henry, followed by Con., regards 
the whole description as one, not of an inauspicious, but of an auspi- 
cious marriage, in which the gods take the parts ordinarily performed 
by mortals. Nymphae. They may be Oreads, Dryads, or Naiads. 
Henry argues from summo vertice that they are Oreads. — 169 - 171. 
The meaning is, that day sealed Dido's ruin, for henceforth she al- 
lowed herself to regard Aeneas as her husband and treated him as 
such openly. — 170. Specie famave = by the appearance (of the 
thing) or by the speech of people. " She cares nought for the com- 
mon eye or the common tongue." — 172. Culpam. Cf. v. 19. — 
173. Fama = Rumor. — 174. Malum. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204 — 
176. Primo = at first. — 178. Ira — deorum = enraged with an- 
ger against the gods ; i. e. because they thrust her offspring, the Titans, 
down to Tartarus. Ira with gen. of the cause of quarrel occurs in II. 
413 : it is here extended to the persons against whom anger is felt. 
— 179. Virg. seems to confuse Titans and Giants, Enceladus being 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 605 

a Giant, Coeus a Titan. See on Hor. C. III. 4. 41 - 56 and 73 foil. 
— 180. Pedibus . . . alis. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Pernicibus 
= untiring. — 181. Cui limits sunt understood and sonant — 182. 
Subter. An eye is supposed to be under every feather. — 184. 
Coeli — terrae = inter coelum et terram. — 185. Stridens ; of the 
noise made by her wings. Somno. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. — 186. 
Luce = by day. Custos = as a spy ; i. e. carefully watching that 
nothing may escape her. — 188. Quam — veri = as a reporter of 
truth ; sc. is tenacious of truth. — 192. Cui . . . viro = to whom as 
a husband. Dignetur. Gr. 529. A. & S. 266. 2. — 193. Hiemem 
— fovere = are passing the winter together in pleasures, as long as 
it (is) : an unusual expression for se luxu fovere per hiemem. — 194. 
Regnorum; i. e. of Carthage and Italy. — 195. Haec — ora; i. e. 
with these tales she fills every mouth. — 196. Iarban. Cf. v. 36. 
— 198. Hie satus. Iarbas is here made a son of Ammon, the 
Libyan god whom the Greeks identified with Zeus and the Romans 
with Jupiter. Garamantide = Libyan. The Garamantes were a 
powerful tribe in the interior of Africa. — 200. Vigilem = ever- 
burning. — 201. Excubias = watches. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. — 
202. Solum . . . limina: accusatives somewhat loosely connected 
with sacraverat — 203. Animi. Gr. 399. 3. 4). A. & S. 213, R. 1 
(a). — 204. Media — numina = in the midst of the statues. — 205. 
Multa Jovem. Gr. 374. A. & S. 231. — 206. Nunc; i. e. now 
and never before, thy worship having been, until introduced by me, 
unknown to the Maurusian (= Moorish) nation. Pictis . . . toris 
points to banquets like Dido's in A. I. — 207. Lenaeum . . . hono- 
rem. See on I. 736; G. II. 4. — 208. Genitor ; instead of the 
vague pater, because Iarbas is insisting on real relationship. — 209. 
Caeci = aimless. It is emphatic. — 210. Inania — miscent = do 
they (i. e. ignes) mingle unmeaning thunders ? Miscent is here ap- 
plied to the vague confused rumbling of thunder. — 212. Pretio = 
by money, by purchase. Cf. I. 367. Litus; land by the sea. — 213. 
Loci leges = jurisdiction over the place ; i. e. whom we made queen 
of the spot. — 214. Dominum is here used in an invidious sense. — 
215. Ille. Gr. 450. 5. A. & S. 207, R. 24. Paris ; i. e. in his sup- 
posed effeminacy and in his conquest of the bride of another. — 216. 
Maeonia = Lydian. See on Ov. M. III. 583. Mentum. Gr. 380. 
A. & S. 234. II. — 217. Rapto = his prey. Potitur. See on III. 
56. — 218. The force of quippe here is doubtful. On the whole we 
prefer to restrict its reference to tuis, = to thy (temples) indeed ; 
i. e. we are bringing gifts to temples where we believe thou dwellest, 
quippe tuis answering to inanem. Famam — inanem = and cherish 
thy empty (i. e. worthless to us) reputation ; famam referring generally 
to the reputation of Jove as a god, rather than specially to his reputed 



606 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

relation to Iarbas. — 219. Arasque tenentem. The touching of 
the altar implies solemnity and earnestness. — 223. Vade age. See 
on III. 462. — 225. Exspectat = is delaying : a very uncommon 
use of the word. Datas. See on III. 255. — 227. Genetrix: 
Venus. — 228. Ideo ; i. e. that he might dwell in Carthage unmind- 
ful of his kingdom. Bis : once from Diomedes (see on I. 97, 98), 
and again from the Greeks at the sack of Troy (see on II. 632). 
Vindicat = preserved and still preserves. — 229 ; sc. ilium from 
v. 227. Gravidam imperils = teeming with empire. Bello. Gr. 
414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 230. Regeret. G. 501. 1. A. & S. 264. 1. 
Genus . . . proderet = should transmit a line. — 231. Ac — or- 
bem. Aeneas is said to do what Rome ultimately did. — 232. 
Accendit ; sc. eum. — 233. Super = for, on account of. — 234. 
Pater. Gr. 363 and 2. A. & S. 204. Romanas . . . arces. See 
on G. II. 172. — 235. Inimica; as under- Juno's patronage, and as 
the destined opponent of Rome's supremacy. — 236. Prolem Au- 
soniam is the same as genus — Teucri, v. 230. See on III. 171. 

— 237. Hie — esto = in this be thou my herald : lit. be thou this 
herald from us. Some make nuntius = the message. Hie = de hac 
re.— 238. Ille = the other. — 239. Talaria = winged sandals.— 
242. Virgam ; i. e. the caduceus. Evocat. Gr. 467. II. A. & S. 
145. 1. 1. — 244. Lumina — resignat = opens the eyes of the dead : 
lit. during (i. e. after) death, in being omitted. The reference is to 
the Roman custom of closing a person's eyes at death, and opening 
them again when the body was laid on the pile seven days afterwards: 
the object being that the dead might see their way to the lower world. 

— 245. Ilia. Gr. 419. IV. Agit = drives (before him). — 247. At- 
lantis. See on Ov. M. IV. 632, 662. Duri. See on III. 94. — 248. 
Cui = whose. Gr. 398. 5. A.& S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 250. Turn. See 
on G. II. 296. Mento. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 {b). — 251. 
Praecipitant = rush down. See on II. 9. — 252. Paribus nitens 
. . . alis = poising himself on even wings. Cyllenius. See on G. I. 
337. — 253. Toto — corpore = with the weight of his whole body. 

— 255. Piscosos indicates the object of the bird. Gr. 323. A. & S 
128. 4. — 257. Litus — secabat = (and) was dividing the sandy 
shore of Libya from the winds : lit. the shore and the winds ; i. e. he 
was flying so close to the shore as to be, as it were, between the winds 
and the land — a repetition in more specific language of terras — 
volabat. So v. 695, Quae animam nexosque resolveret artus = quae 
animam ab artubus resolveret. — 258. Materno . . . avo. See on I. 
297.-259. Magalia. See on I. 421. — 260. See on I. 423 foil. 

— 263. Quae munera ; referring only to laena ; but Virg. may 
have been led to use the plu. by thinking at the same time of the 
sword which was also, doubtless, Dido's present. — 264. Tenui — 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 607 

auro = had varied the warp with a thread of gold. — 265. Invadit 
= attacks (him) ; like aggreditur, v. 92, but stronger. Altae. See 
on v. 97. — 266. Uxorius = like a fond husband. — 269. Numine 
torquet = makes revolve by his divine power. — 271. Teris otia 
= dost thou waste thy time in inaction ; i. e. so far as the work as- 
signed him by destiny was concerned. — 274. Spes . . . Iuli. See 
on I. 556. — 276. Debentur ; i.e. by destiny. Ore = oratione. — 
277. Mortales visus . . . reliquit = put off his human form ; i. e. 
which he had assumed in order that he might be seen. Medio ser- 
mone ; not that his speech was not finished, but used rhetorically to 
indicate an abrupt termination. So v. 388. — 279. Amens = be- 
wildered. — 281. Abire. Gr. 552. 1. A. & S. 271, R. 4. Fuga. 
Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2.-283. Agat. Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 
260, R. 5. So andeat. Ambire = to approach indirectly. — 284. 
Quae — sumat = what shall be the beginning of his introduction : 
lit. what first beginnings shall he select. — 285. Dividit = turns. — 
286. In — versat = and hurries it in various directions and thinks 
of everything. — 289. Aptent = (bidding) them get ready. Vocat 
implies a command. Gr. 529 ; 530. 3. 2). A. & S. 266, 2, R. I (b). 
So cogant, parent, and dissimulent. — 290. Anna = the equipments. 
Sit. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Rebus . . . novandis = for chang- 
ing their plans. — 291. Sese . . . tentaturum ; sc. esse. The verbum 
sentiendi is implied in vocat. Quando = since. — 292. Nesciat ; 
i. e. of what is going on. Gr. 531. A. & S. 262. 2. So speret. Non 
speret = does not apprehend. — 293. Aditus = the avenues (to 
her feelings). Mollissima tempora (sc. sint) = may be the most 
fitting moments. — 294. Quis — modus = what mode (of proced- 
ure) may be favorable for his circumstances. Ocius. Gr. 444. 1. 
A. & S. 256, R. 9(a). —297. Excepit = detected. Prima = at 
first ; not before any one else, but at the very moment when it was 
beginning to take effect. — 298. Tuta = (even while) secure. 
Eadem. See v. 1 73. Furenti ; proleptic, expressing the effect of 
the news on Dido. — 300. Animi Gr. 399. 2. 2) and (3). — 301. 
Bacchatur. Queens often took part in Bacchanalian orgies. So 
Helen, VI. 517, Amata, VII. 385 foil. Commotis . . . sacris ; be- 
cause the statue and sacred insignia of the god were brought out of 
the temple and moved violently. The noise excites the Bacchante 
( Thyias, here a dissyllable), who is caught by the frenzy. — 302. 
Audito . . . Baccho ; i. e. when the cry, Io ! B ace he, is heard. — 
303. Orgia ; the subject of stimulant. Nocturnus = by night. 
Cithaeron. See on Ov. M. II. 223 ; III. 702. — 304. Ultro. See 
on II. 279. — 305. Etiam strengthens dissimu/are ; i. e. not only to 
commit the wrong, but to do it secretly. — 306. Tacitus. Gr. 547 
and I. A. & S. 271, R. 4. — 307. Dextera ; with which Aeneas had 



608 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

plighted his troth to Dido. — 309. Quin etiam. See on G. II. 269. 
Moliris. See on I. 564. Here it signifies preparation accompanied 
with effort. Sidere = season, weather. — 310. Aquilonibus. Gr. 
426. 1. A. & S. 253, N. 1. It was the stormy season. — 313. Undo- 
sum ; emphatic. — 314. Mene fugis ; i. e. is the object of your un- 
seasonable departure not to reach Italy, but to rid yourself of me ? — 
315. Nihil — reliqui. Dido has given up all for Aeneas. — 316. 
Connubia was the furtive union, hymenaeos the formal rite to which 
she flattered herself it was a prelude ; whence inceptos. — 317. Quid. 
Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). 320. Nomadum = Numidarum. — 321. 
Tyrii ; referring probably to the Carthaginians, who may be sup- 
posed to be indignant at their queen for surrendering herself and them 
to a stranger. Eundem. Gr. 451. 3. A. & S. 207, R. 27 (a). — 322. 
Exstinctus pudor ; because she could no longer boast of unblem- 
ished fidelity to her dead husband's memory. Qua sola ; i. e. which 
was my sole title to immortality. — 323. Moribundam = soon to 
die. — 324. Hoc — nomen ; i. e. hospes = guest. — 325. Quid 
moror = why do I delay ? i. e. to die. — 326. Destruat . . . ducat. 
Gr. 522. II. A. & S. 263. 4. Gaetulus. Iarbas was not strictly a 
Gaetulian. See on vv. 40, 196. By poetic license, Virg. often puts 
one tribe for another. — 327. Mihi — fuisset = had been born to 
me by thee. — 329. Tamen ( = nevertheless) introduces a consola- 
tory thought, and refers to a suppressed idea : qui, quamvis tibi non 
par, te tamen, etc. Ore = in feature. — 330. Capta ac deserta = 
bereft and forlorn. This sense of capta seems preferable to "cap- 
tured," the rendering commonly given. — 331. Monitis. Gr. 414. 
2. A. & S. 247. 1. Immota . . . lumina. Cf. num lumina flexit, 
v. 369. — 332. Premebat. See on I. 209. — 333. Plurima. Trans- 
late as the object of promeritam (esse). Fando. Cf. II. 361. — 335. 
Promeritam (sc. esse) = have deserved (of me) ; i. e. have done me 
many favors : referring to si bene quid de te merui, v. 3 1 7. Elissae ; 
supposed to be Dido's original name. — 336. Dum — mei ; i. e. as 
long as memory lasts. — 337. Pro re = as circumstances allow. 
This interpretation harmonizes with pauca, the meaning being that 
the urgency of the case admits only a short reply. — 338. Speravi 
= expected. Ne finge = do not imagine (it). Parenthetical. Nee 
— taedas = nor did I ever cause the bridegroom's torch to be car- 
ried before (thee) ; i. e. I never acknowledged myself as your hus- 
band. Aut — veni = nor did enter into such (haec) a. contract. 
For aut see on III. 43. — 340. Meis . . . auspiciis = by my own 
direction. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 341. Sponte mea = ac- 
cording to my own will. Componere curas == to settle my troubles ; 
i. e. to terminate them. — 343. Colerem = would be inhabiting . . . 
would be honoring. Gr. 704. I. 2 ; 477. A. & S. 323. 1 (2) (a) ; 145, 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 609 

II. So paterentur and manerent. — 344. Et — victis = and 

the citadel of Troy returning (to its former state) I myself (manu) 
would have rebuilt for the vanquished. — 345. Gryneus ; from 
Grynia or Grynium, a town of Aetolis, in Asia Minor, famed for a 
grove and shrine sacred to Apollo. — 346. Lyciae. See on v. 143. 
Capessere = to make for. Sortes = oracles. — 347. Hie. Gr. 
445.4. A. & S. 206(8). Amor. See on E. VII. 21. —349. Tan- 
dem. See on I. 331. — 350. Invidia = jealousy. Et = also ; i. e. 
as well as you. — 353. Turbida = agitated. — 354. Capitis ; sug- 
gesting the idea of personal loss. Cf. capitis deminutio. — 355. Regno. 
Gr. 419. 3 and 1). A. & S. 251. Fatalibus = destined. — 356. In- 
terpres = the spokesman ; Mercury. — 357. Testor — caput = I 
swear by each head ; i. e. mine and thine. — 358. Manifesto in 
lumine. Cf. III. 151. — 360. Incendere; referring here to the 
agitation of grief. — 362. Aversa = askance. — 364. Luminibus 
tacitis for ipsa tacita. Sic ; with accensa. Profatur. Gr. 467. III. 
A. & S. 145. I. 3. Tuetur and pererrat are to be explained by Gr. 
467. 2 and A. & S. 145. 1. 2. — 366. Cautibus. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 
247. 1. — 367. Caucasus. See on G. II. 440. Hyrcanae. Hyr- 
cania was on the S. and S. E. shores of the Caspian sea. — 368. 
Quid dissimulo = why do I hide my feelings ; i. e. as if there were 
likely to be any greater occasion (majora) to call them forth. — 369. 
Lumina flexit. See on v. 33 1 . — 371. Quae — anteferam = what 
shall I say first ? i. e. to what feelings shall I first give utterance ? 
lit. what shall I bear before what ? Jam jam. See on II. 701. — 
372. Aequis = just. — 373. Tuta = firm, reliable. Ejectum. Cf. 
I. 578. Litore. Gr. 422. 3. A. & S. 254, R. 3. Egentem. Cf. I. 
599. — 376. Furiis . . . feror. See on v. 1 10. Augur Apollo. See 
on Hor. C. I. 2. 32. — 379. Scilicet = of course : ironical. Is 
labor . . . ea cura See on II. 171. — 380. Te ; emphatic. — 382. 
Quid. G. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). Pia. See on II. 536. — 383. 
Hausurum. G. 545. 2. A. & S. 239, R. 1. Nomine. Gr. 414. 3. 
A. & S. 247. 2. Dido. Gr. 92. 3. A. & S. 69, Ex. 3. — 384. Se- 
quar — ignibus ; i. e. she will haunt him like a fury with funereal 
torches, alive (absens) or dead (umbra). Atris; because smoky. 
Absens. See on v. 83. — 387. Haec . . . fama for hujus rei fama. 
See on II. 171. Manes = the infernal regions. Imos. Gr. 441. 6. 
A. & S. 205, R. 17). — 388. Medium . . . sermonem. See on v. 
277. Dictis. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. Auras ; for lucent. — 
390. Multa. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). So v. 395. Join with 
cunctantem. Metu ; i. e. of making matters worse. — 392. Thalamo. 
Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. — 394. Dictis — curas. Cf. II. 
775. — 397. Turn vero implies that Aeneas's coming stimulated the 
crews to fresh exertions. Incumbunt; absolutely. — 398. Dedu- 
39 



6 10 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

cunt. See on I. 551. Observe the effect of spondees in the former, 
and of dactyls in the latter, half of the line. — 399. Remos ; i.e. 
timber for oars. — 401. Cernas. The present gives greater vivid- 
ness to the expression than the imperf, which is the usual construc- 
tion. Gr. 486. 4. A. & S. 260, R. 2. — 402. Ac velut . . . quum. 
See on I. 148. — 404. It . . . convectant. Gr. 461. A. & S. 209, 
R. 11 and (2). —405. Cf. G. I. 380. —406. Agmina cogunt = 
rally the (straggling) ranks. — 407. Moras; for morcmtes ; abstract 
for concrete. Fervet = glows. — 409. Fervere. See on G. 1. 456. 

— 410. Prospiceres . . . videres. See on v. 401. Arce. Dido's 
palace was in the citadel, like Priam's, II. 760. After recovering from 
her prostration she mounts the roof. — 411. Misceri . . . clamori- 
bus, like gemitu — miscetur, II. 486. — 412. Quid. See on III. 56. 

— 413. Ire ... in lacrimas = to have recourse to tears. Cf. V. 
782. — 414. Animos = her haughty spirit ; somewhat as we talk of 
spirits. — 415. Frustra moritura. She would die in vain, or 
without any occasion for dying, should she leave any means untried, 
by which Aeneas might be won back. — 418. Nautae — coronas ; 
in token of joy at their departure. Cf. G. I. 304, where the wreaths ex- 
press joy at the return from a long voyage. — 419. Hunc — potero 
= if I have been able (as I have) to look forward to this crushing 
sorrow, I shall be able to bear it too, my sister. — 420. Tamen = 
(though I shall finally conquer my grief ) yet. — 422. Colere = was 
accustomed to esteem, put confidence in. See on G. I. 200. — 423. 
Viri — tempora == the fitting moments to approach the man. See 
on v. 293. The approach is called mollis, because it is then that the 
man is mollis. Molles belongs to tempora as well as to aditus. — 424. 
Hostem. He is no longer even hospes, v. 323. Superbum ; re- 
ferring to his obduracy, which she ascribes to haughty disdain. — 425, 
426. Non — misi. He could not treat his sworn foes worse ; and 
I am none of them. Aulide ; a seaport town of Boeotia, the ren- 
dezvous of the Grecian fleet before sailing for Troy. — 427. Revelli 
= I did dig up . . . disquiet ; the latter being a consequence of the 
former. Gr. 704. I. 2. A. & S. 323. 1 (2) (a). There was a story 
that Diomedes actually did this. — 429. Munus = favor. — 431. 
Non jam = no longer. Antiquum = former. Prodidit = has 
played false. — 432. Careat = forego. — 433. Tempus inane = a 
season of inaction ; i. e. a time when he will do nothing, and when 
she may consequently breathe. Requiem spatiumque = a space 
for resting; like aditus et tempora, v. 423. — 434. Fortuna is the 
fortune of being baffled (victam), and the lesson to be taught is how 
to bear defeat. — 436. Quam — remittam = which when thou 
shalt have given me, I will at my death repay with interest (cumu- 
latam). Perhaps the sense is intentionally ' obscure, her meaning 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 6ll 

being that her return for Anna's kindness will be that she will kill 
herself, and so rid her sister of the burden. The passage is regarded 
as the most troublesome and difficult in Virgil. The genuineness of 
the text is doubtful. — 437. Fletus = tearful appeals. —438. Fert- 
que refertque ; i. e. bears repeatedly from Dido, not from Aeneas. 

439. A ut. See on III. 43. Tractabilis = yielding, exorable. — 

440. Placidas = kind, humane ; expressing the general character- 
istic of the man. Deus is general. — 443. Altae is proleptic. It 
may, however, merely mean the towering foliage. — 445. Quantum 

— tendit. Cf. G. II. 291, 292. Auras aetherias. See on I. 546. 

— 449. Lacrimae ; i. e. Dido's. — 450. Exterrita = maddened. — 
451. Convexa = the vault. Cf. VI. 241. Coeli convexa is the same 
as lucem in next line. — 452. Peragat . . . relinquat. The same 
latitude which allows the present to be used historically for the past 
in the indicative is sometimes extended to the other modes. Gr. 481. 
IV. A. & S. 258, R. 1 (a) and R. 3 {d). — 453. Imponeret aris. 
Cf. I. 49. — 455. Obscenum. See on G. I. 470. Here it may also 
express the notion of foulness. — 457. Tectis ; i. e. the open court 
in the palace. De — templum=a marble chapel. — 458. Anti- 
qui See on v. 431. Cf. also v. 633. — 459. Velleribus = with 
woollen fillets. Festa fronde. Cf. II. 249. — 462. Culminibus ; 
i. e. of the palace. — 463. Queri ; sc. visa est. Longas . . . ducere 
= to prolong ; longas being proleptic. — 464. Friorum. Dido's 
mind is haunted with the remembrance of old predictions. The com- 
mon reading is piorum. — 465. Agit == drives, pursues. — 468. 
Tyrios ; i.e. her Tyrian subjects, who have forsaken her. — 469. 
Eumenidum. See on Ov. M. X. 46. Pentheus. See Introd. to 
Ov. M. III. 582 foil, and on Hor. E. I. 16. 73. Verse 470 is a trans- 
lation of a passage in the Bacchae of Euripides. — 471. Scenis 
agitatus = driven over the stage. See on III. 331. — 474. Con- 
cepit furias = has become mad. See on I. 41. Evicta. See on 
II.630. — 475. Modum. See on v. 294 — 476. Exigit = settles. 

— 479. Reddat. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264 1 {a) and (£). — 480. 
Oceani finem. See on G. II. 122. — 481. Atlas. See on v. 247. 

— 482. Axem — heaven. See on II. 512. Aptum = connected 
with, fastened to; here a participle from the obsolete apo. — 483. 
Massylae = Libyan ; the special term for the general. See on v. 
132. — 484. Templi = of the sacred enclosure; i. e. the garden 
of the Hesperides. Que ; connecting custos and quae dabat. — 485. 
Sacros ; i. e. to Juno, to Venus, or to Earth, according to differ- 
ent accounts. Servabat. She preserved the golden apples by 
inducing the dragon to preserve them ; and he is induced by being 
fed with dainties. — 486. Spargens = by sprinkling; i. e. on the 
food. See on Hor. A. P. 375. —487. Carminibus = by her incanta- 



6l2 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

tions. Solvere ; as in v. 479. — 489. Fluviis. Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 
223, N. — 490. Nocturnos. See on v. 303. Ciet = calls up. Mu- 
gire — terram. Cf. VI. 256. Videbis. Videre is not unfrequently 
transferred from the eyes to the other senses. — 491. Oruos. The 
trees follow the enchantress as they did Orpheus. Cf. VI. 256. — 493. 
Caput. See on v. 357. Invitam. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 15. 
Accingier. Gr. 239. 6. A. & S. 162. 6. See on II. 383. Artes. 
Gr. 374 7. A. & S. 234. I. R. 1 {a). — 494. Secreta is explained 
by tecto interiore ; i. e. the impluvium. See on II. 512. Sub auras 
= up to the sky ; indicating the height of the pile. It implies also 
sub divo. — 497. Superimponas. Gr. 487. A. & S. 260, R. 6. — 
498. Monstrat = directs (me to do it). — 500. Tamen; i. e. in 
spite of her paleness. — 501. Tantos ; i. e. as that of her sister. 
Mente . . . concipit = imagine. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 

502. Morte. Gr. 426. r. A. & S. 253 and N. 1. Cf. III. 333.— 

503. Jussa. — res jussas. — 504. Penetrali in sede; same as /^ 
interiore, v. 494 — 505. Taedis — secta ; with ingenti. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 247. 1. Some connect them with erecta. — 506. Intendit 
= encircles. Fronde; i. e. of the cypress, pitch-tree, and yew. Cf. 
VI. 215, 216. — 507. Super; adverbial. Ensem. See v. 646. — 
508. Toro ; the lectus jugalis, v. 496. — 509. Sacerdos. See v. 483. 
— 510. Erebumque Chaosque shows that the invocation was 
chiefly of the infernal gods. Erebus was a brother of Tartarus and 
son of Chaos. — 511. Tergeminam ; because she was Luna in 
heaven, Diana on earth, and Hecate in the lower regions. Tergemi- 
nam Hecaten means the same as tria — Dianae = the three faces, or 
forms, of the virgin Diana. Cf. VI. 247. — 512. Simulates = pre- 
tended, counterfeit. — 513. Ad Lunam = by moonlight. — 514. 
Pubentes ; including the two notions of downiness and luxuriance. 
Nigri — veneni = whose juice is deadly poison. It is descriptive 
of herbae. — 516. Amor = a philter, love-charm. The ancients 
believed that foals were born with a fleshy excrescence on their fore- 
heads, which was eagerly bitten off by their dams, and that if it was 
previously removed in any other way, the dam lost all affection for 
her young and refused to rear it. This excrescence, called hippoma- 
nes, was supposed to act as a love-charm, and amor is here used for it 
by meton. Matri. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. — 517. Ipsa ; 
Dido. The mola, or salt barley cake, was broken and thrown into 
the fire. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 518. Vinclis. Gr. 425 and 
2. A. & S. 251. — 519. Conscia — sidera. The stars are appealed 
to as knowing the secrets of destiny, probably that they may witness 
that she had no choice but to act as she had done. — 520. Non 
aequo foedere = who are not equally matched. Gr. 428. A. & S. 
211, R. 6, — 524. Quum refers to nox erat. Medio; emphatic. 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 613 

Volvuntur, See on II. 383. 525. Pecudes, etc. ; subjects of 
lenibant, if v. 528 is genuine ; otherwise, of facet. — 526. Quaeque 
. . . quaeque ; epexigetical of vohicres. — 527. Somno positae = 
lying (lit. laid) in sleep. Cf. II. 644. Some consider somno a dat. 
= ad somnum. — 529. Animi. Gr. 399. 3. 4). A. & S. 213, R. 2. 
Fhoenissa ; sc. lenibat or facet, as v. 528 is retained or rejected. — 
533. Sic — insistit = thus then she begins to reflect. On adeo see 
on E. IV. 11. — 534. En. See on E. I. 68. Irrisa ; probably by 
Aeneas. — 535. Nomadum ; for Africans generally. — 536. Sim. 
Gr. 515. II. ; 516. 4. A. & S. 264. 2. — 537. Igitur implies that a 
negative answer has been mentally given to the preceding question. 
Ultima = infima, the most degrading. — 538. Sequar. Gr. 704. 
I. 2. A. & S. 323. 1 (2) {a). Quiane, etc. The construction is, 
seqttarne classes . . . quiajuvat Teucros ante levatos esse auxilio (meo). 

— 539. Bene; probably with memores. Stat = remains undimin- 
ished. The whole passage is strongly ironical. — 540. Fac velle 
(sc. me) = suppose I were willing. — 542. Laomedonteae. See on 
G. I. 502. — 543. Ovantes ; including the notion of triumph. — 544. 
Stipata = accompanied. — 545. Inferar = shall I attack, pursue : 
lit. bear myself against. — 546. Agam pelago = shall I drive over 
the sea. — 547. Quin = nay. — 548. Prima ; not implying that 
others did it afterwards, but that Anna was the author of the mischief. 

— 550. Non licuit = why was it not allowed me ! a passionate 
exclamation. — 551. More ferae ; referring merely to the life of 
beasts as contrasted with civilization. Tangere = to meddle with. 

— 552. Sychaeo. Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 21 1, R. 4 {a). — 553. Rum- 
pebat. See on III. 246. — 554 Eundi. Gr. 563. A. & S. 275. 
III. R. 1 (2). — 556. Forma dei ; non deus ipse. Vultu. Gr. 
414.3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 558. Coloremque. See on I. 332. — 
559. Juventa. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 561. Deinde = 
from this time, immediately. — 564. Mori. Gr. 552. 3. A. & S. 
270, R. 1. Cf. v. 554. — 566. Jam = at once, presently. Trabi- 
bus ; i. e. with Dido's fleet. — 569. Eja age = up then ! away ! 
Varium et mutabile. See on E. III. 80. — 571. Umbris = appa- 
rition. = 572. Fatigat = worries, arouses. — 573. Praecipites = 
quick, quickly. Join with both vigilate and consi'd/te. — 575. Tortos 
= twisted. — 577. Quisquis es ; a saving clause thrown in from 
motives of reverence, lest the speaker should have mistaken the god 
or addressed him by a name unacceptable to him. — 578. Sidera. 
See on G. I. 311. Coelo. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 581. 
Rapiuntque ruuntque = they both lay hold (of the cordage) and 
rush (to their posts}. — 582. Deseruere. See on G. I. 330. — 585. 
Tithoni. See on G. I. 446. — 586. E speculis = arcc ex summa. 
See on v. 410. — 587. Aequatis . . . velis ; i. e. the fleet going im- 



614 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

mediately before the wind. — 589. Pectus. See on I. 481. — 591. 
Illuserit. See on II. 581 for the force of the fut. perf. — 593. Alii 
= some. For alii not preceded by alii, see Caes. B. G. I. 8. — 595. 
Mentem . . . mutat = turns my brain. A momentary return to 
calmness. — 596. Facta impia ; referring probably to Dido's own 
faithlessness to the memory of Sychaeus. — 597. Decuit ; sc. facta 
impia tangere te. — 598. Quern ; sc. ejus before quern, or consider 
dextra fidesque equivalent to vir fidclis. — 599. Humeris. See on 
II. 708. — 600. Abreptum divellere. See on I. 69. — 603. Fue- 
rat ; for fuisset. See on G. II. 133. Fuisset. Gr. 516. II. 1. A. 
& S. 260, R. 3. — 604. Quern metui ; a more direct way of putting 
the question, " whom should I have feared ? " So v. 19, we have 
potui when we might have expected potuissem. Castra; transferred 
to naval matters, as in III. 519. — 605, 606. Implessem . . . ex- 
tinxem. Gr. 234 and 3. A. & S. 162. 7 (a) and (c). Super = 
insuper. Dedissem ; sc. in ignes. Cf. II. 566. — 607. Sol is in- 
voked as knowing all that is done on the earth. So sidera, v. 520. — 
608. Interpres = the medium. As Juno Pronuba, she had presided 
over the union of hearts, and so could impartially judge between them. 
Conscia = witness. Cf. v. 167. — 609. Nocturnis . . . triviis = 
at the cross-roads by night. — 610. Dirae ultrices. Cf. v. 473. — 
611. Meritum — numen = turn against my ills the (wrathful) 
power which they have deserved. — 614. Fata Jovis. See on III. 
376. Hie — haeret = (and) this limit (i. e. decree) is fixed. — 615. 
At = at least, yet. — 622. Turn = in the next place. — 623. Haec 
. . . munera = these (i. e. such) funeral offerings ; i. e. the news of) 
these things. See on v. 387. — 625. Exoriare aliquis . . . ultor = 
arise thou, some avenger. Hannibal is supposed to be meant. — 626. 
Sequare. Gr. 500 and 1. A. & S. 264. 5. — 627. Dabunt se = 
dabuntur. — 630. Partes — omnes. See on vv. 285, 286. — 633. 
Antiqua. See on v. 458. Ciuis ater; the natural identification 
of the human dust with the dust of earth. — 634. Mini ; with siste. — 
635. Properet. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262. 4. — 636. Monstrata 
= enjoined ; i. e. by the priestess. Ducat ; in its sacrificial sense. 
Cf. VI. 153. — 637. Sic; emphatic: Dido's object being to gain 
time. Veniat; same as properet. — 637. Quae — paravi = quae 
rite paravi et incepi. — 640. Dardanii . . . capitis ; like infandum 
caput, v. 613. Rogum ; with capitis. — 642. Coeptis immanibus. 
Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. So morte, v. 644. — 644. Genas. Gr. 
380. A. & S. 234. II. — 645. She had been in her palace-tower, v. 
586, from which she now descends. The pile was in the impluvium. 
Cf. v. 494. — 647. Nou — usus = a gift not sought for such a use. 
— 648. Hie. See on I. 728. — 649. Lacrimis et mente = for 
tears and thought. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 650. Novissima 



THE AENEID. BOOK IV. 6l$ 

= ultima. — 654. Magna . . . imago ; probably including the notion 
of size greater than life (see on II. 773), as well as that of queenly 
majesty. Mei. Gr. 398. 3. A. & S. 211, R. 3 [b), fine print. — 656. 
Poenas = satisfaction ; i. e. I have punished. See I. 360 foil. — 
659. Os. See on II. 490. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 660. Sic 

— umbras. Cf. Dryden : " Yet e'en this death with pleasure I re- 
ceive : On any terms, 'tis better than to live." Juvat ire of a 
pleasure-journey, II. 27. — 662. Dardanus ; contemptuous. — 663. 
Ferro = in ferritin. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. It may 
come under Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 664. Comites; her female 
attendants. — 665. It ; from the comites. — 666. Fama ; personified, 
as in vv. 173, 298. — 667. Femineo. Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 211, R. 
4 {a). See on G. I. 437. — 670. Tyros. Gr. 46. A. & S. 54. — 
671. Culmina = tecta. Cf. V. 459. Volvantur. See on II. 383. 

— 675. Hoc illud . . . fuit = was this the thing you had in view ? 
Cf III. 558. — 676. Iste. Gr. 450. A. & S. 207, R. 25. — 677. 
Quid — querar. The effect of the question is how she shall best 
express her sense of her desertion. — 678. Vocasses = vocare de- 
oebas, utinam me vocasses. The construction may be explained by 
supposing a suppressed condition : if I had had my will, you would 
have invited me to share your fate. — 679. Tulisset See on II. 
554, 600. — 680. Struxi; sc. rogum. — 681. Sic. See on II. 644. 
Crudelis ; with ego. — 682. Extinxti. See on v. 606. — 683. Date 

— lymphis ; a rhetorical inversion, the water being represented as 
craving for the wounds which it is to wash. Cf. III. 61, dare — austros. 

— 684. Abluam. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. Super = re- 
maining. See on III. 489. — 685. Legam. Gr. 487. A. & S. 
260, R. 6. Evaserat. See on II. 458. — 692. Reperta = when 
it was found. — 695. Quae — artus = to separate the struggling 
soul from the limbs (that were) joined (with it). — 696. Fato is to 
be understood of a natural, merita morte of a violent death pro- 
voked by some action on the sufferer's part. — 698. Crinem; from 
the analogy of sacrifices, where a few hairs are plucked from the fore- 
head of the victim as part of the offering (see VI. 245, 246), a dying 
person being regarded as a victim to the powers below. — 701. Tra- 
hens . . . adverso sole = drawing from the opposite sun. — 702. 
Adstitit. See on G. I. 330. Diti. Gr. 391. A. & S. 222. 3. 



6l6 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 



THE AENEID. Book V. 

In the first half of the Aeneid it would almost seem as if Virgil had 
intentionally relieved those portions of his narrative which possess 
the most absorbing interest with others of a more level and less 
exciting kind. The detailed account of the agonies of the one night 
of Troy's capture was succeeded by a rapid sketch of the events of 
seven years of travel ; and now we pass from the spectacle of Dido's 
frantic love and (as a modern reader will regard it) Aeneas's faith- 
lessness to a description of the games celebrated by the Trojan hero 
in Sicily on the anniversary of his father's death. This serves to 
conduct us from the tragedy of the Fourth Book to the mysterious 
solemnities of the Sixth. Aeneas does not pass at once from the 
terrible conflict of love and duty to the initiation which is reserved 
for the chosen favorites of Heaven, but i« shown to us as the pious 
and beneficent prince, reverentially dutiful to his father's memory, 
and kind and liberal to his followers and friends, — encouraging the 
ambition of his own men and returning the courtesies of the Sicilians 
by a display in which it is his honor to be the dispenser of honors to 
others. 

ARGUMENT. 

Aeneas, leaving Carthage, sets sail for Italy, but by the violence of 
a tempest is a second time driven on the coast of Sicily, where, as- 
sisted by Acestes, he celebrates games at the tomb of his father An- 
chises, on the anniversary of his death (1-603). In the meantime 
the Trojan women, instigated by Iris, the messenger of Juno, set fire 
to the ships, of which four are burned, the others being miracu- 
lously preserved by Jupiter (604-699). Anchises appears to Aeneas 
in a vision on the following night, and gives him advice and direction 
with regard to his future course (700- 740). Aeneas founds the town 
of Acesta and leaves, as colonists, many of the matrons, and the old 
men unfit for active service in war, and himself again puts to sea with 
his fleet for Latium (741-778). In this voyage Neptune renders the 
sea propitious, and, at length, after his many wanderings, Aeneas 
reaches Italy, having, however, lost his pilot Palinurus when near 
the Hesperian coast (779-871). 

1. Medium . . . tenebat . . . iter ; meaning simply that he was 
well on his way. — 2. Certus = unwavering ; as an arrow going 
straight to its mark is called certa sagitta. Aquilone. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 247. 1. — 4. Accenderit. Gr. 501. I. A. & S» 266. 3. — 5. 



THE AENEID. BOOK V. 617 

Amore. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 6. Notum = the knowledge ; a 
use of the neuter participle often found elsewhere. It is one of the 
subjects of ducunt. Gr. 580. A. & S. 274, R. 5 (b). — 7. Augurium 
= presage, conjectures. Pectora = animos. — 8 - 11. See on III. 
192- 195. — 12. Ipse. Things were so bad that even the pilot, etc. 
— 14. Deinde; belonging not to the part, but to the verb. See on 
II. 391. For the transposition of deinde see on I. 195. — 15. Colli- 
gere arma = to reef the sails. — 16. Obliquat — ventum = and 
turns the swollen sail obliquely to the wind. — 17. Auctor = as 
guarantee. — 18. Spondeat . . . sperem. Gr. 509. A. & S. 261. 2. 
Hoc . . . coelo = hac tempestate. — 19. Transversa. See on E. III. 
8. — 20. In — aer. It was the opinion of the ancients that clouds 
were produced by condensed air. — 21. Contra ; with both verbs. 
Tantum sufficimus = have we as much power (as is wanted). Cf. 
Tanto tractu, G. II. 153. — 24. Fraterna Ery cis =fratris Erycis. 
Eryx was son of Venus and Butes. See on I. 570. — 25. Servata 
= (already) observed ; i. e. in their previous voyage to Sicily. — 27. 
Cerno. Gr. 467. 2. A. & S. 145. I. 2. — 28. Sit. Gr. 486. II. A. & S. 
260, R. 5. — 29. Quove = or (can there be any) whither. Optem. 
Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. — 30. Acesten. See on I. 195. — 34. Ad- 
vertuntur. Cf. I. 158. — 35. Vertice = from the top. Cf. I. 403. 
— 36. Adventum — rates. Hendiadys. — 37. In = with. Li- 
bystidis = Libycae. — 38. Crimiso — flumine = conceived of the 
river (god) Crimisus : a river of Sicily. Gr. 425. 3. 1). A. & S. 246. 
The common construction is concipere de or ex aliquo. — 39. Vete- 
rum . . . parentum ; i. e. his mother's Trojan ancestry. — 40. Gra- 
tatur reduces ; sc. esse. — 42. Primo . . . oriente = at the rising of 
the sun. See on III. 588. — 44. Tumuli ; i. e. a mound made for the 
occasion. — 45. A — divum ; because Dardanus was the son of 
Jupiter. — 47. Ex quo (sc. tempore) = since. — 50. Sic di volu- 
istis ; a formula of resignation. — 51. Gaetulis = Libycis. See on 
IV. 40. Agerem=I were spending. — 52. Deprensus= sur- 
prised ; i. e. by the arrival of the day at an inopportune time. Et 
couples Mycenae with the Argolic sea as distinguished from Aeneas's 
African perils (Gaetulis Syrtibus). — 53. Ordine. See on III. 548. 
Pompas = funeral processions. — 54. Suis = appropriate. — 55. 
Ultro = moreover. Ipsius virtually = ipsos. — 56. Numine. See 
on II. 777. — 59. Poscamus ventos = let us ask (him) for winds ; 
i. e. favorable winds. — 60. Urbe. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. Velit. 
Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 62. Numero. Gr. 429. A. & S. 
250. 1. — 64. Si = qitum. — 65. See on IV. 119. — 66. Prima; 
i. e. first in order. Ponam certamina. See on G. II. 530. — 67. 
Cursu. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. So viribus. — 68. Jaculo. 
Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Incedit melior = is more skilful. Aut 



6l8 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

. . . seu are here treated as equivalents. — 69. Fidit = has con- 
fidence, dares. — 71. Ore favete. As the sacred rites at the tomb 
of Anchises are about to begin, Aeneas enjoins a solemn silence. Cin- 
gite ramis ; a part of the ceremonial. — 72. Velat. See on II. 
249 ; III. 174. Materna . . . myrto. See on G. I. 28. — 77. Bac- 
cho. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. So lacte and sanguine. — 80. 
Iterum = again (hail). Recepti . . . paternae = of my father res- 
cued ; i. e. from the flames of Troy. — 81. Nequidquam ; because 
he was to lose him after all. — 82. Fatalia. See on IV. 355. — 83. 
Ausonium. See on III. 171. Quicumque est; since thus far 
he has only heard of it. — 84. Adytis is meant to indicate the sanc- 
tity of the tomb. — 87. Cui. See on I. 448. Auro. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 247. 1. — 89. Mille — colores. See on IV. 701. — 90. Ag- 
mine. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 92. Dapes ; the offerings on 
the altars. — 93. Depasta = tasted. It is explained by libavit. — 
94. Hoc. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. Instaurat; because of the 
suspension of the ceremonies occasioned by the appearance of the 
serpent. — 96. Binas ; for duo. — 99. Acheronte remissos = sent 
back from the lower world ; the shade being assumed to be present 
to partake of the funeral offerings. — 100. Quae — copia = each 
according to his ability. — 102. Alii. See on IV. 592. Fusi. See 
on I. 214. — 105. Phaethontis = of the sun-god. Luce. Gr. 414. 
3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 108. Visuri. Gr. 578. V. A. & S. 274, R. 6 
{a). Certare. See on E. VII. 5. Parati. Gr. 438. 6. A. & S. 
205, R. 3 (1). — 109. Circo = the concourse of people. — 110. 
Tripodes. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. So coronae, palmae, arma, ves- 
tes, and talenta. — 111. Palmae. See on Hor. C. I. 1. 5. Pretium 
= praemium ; an appositive of palmae. Victorious may be taken 
as the dat. of the possessor after some form of the verb sum under- 
stood. — 114. Remis. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. So mole, v. 
118. — 116. Agit = impels. Acri remige; i. e. by the aid of. See 
on I. 564. — 117. Mox = soon afterwards. — 118. G-yas ; sc. agit. 
Urbis opus ; for urbis instar = the size of a city. Triplici . . . 
versu = with a triple tier of oars. — 120. Terno . . . ordine ; for 
tribus ordinibus. See on I. 182. — 123. Cluenti. Gr. 45. 5. 2). A. 
& S. 52. — 125. Olim. See on G. II. 403. —127. Tranquillo = in 
a calm. Gr. 426. 1. A. & S. 253, N. 1. Unda. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 
254, R. 3. — 128. Campus. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. So statio. 
Apricis = basking in the sun. Statio = standing-place. — 130. 
Unde = that from thence. Gr. 500. A. & S. 264. 5 and R. 2. — 
132. Sorte — legunt; because it was an object to secure the place 
which, as nearest to the goal, involved the shortest turn. — 133. 
Ductores; the commanders as distinguished from the pilots (rec- 
tores), v. 161.— 134. Velatur. See on III. 174. —137. Haurit 



THE AENEID. BOOK V. 619 

= exhaust. — 141. Adductis . . . lacertis = by their contracted 
arms : lit. by their arms drawn to (their breasts) ; as in vigorous 
rowing. Versa = upturned. — 144. Praecipites — certamine = 
swiftly in the two-horse chariot race. — 145. Corripuere. See on 
Ov. M. II. 158. For tense see on G. I. 49. So concussere, v. 147. 
Carcere. See on G. I. 512. — 146. Nee sic. See on II. 496. 
Immissis . . . jugis = over (lit. to) the flying steeds. Gr. 705. II. 
A. & S. 324. 2. So pinus, v. 153. — 147. Proni — pendent = and 
hang forward to (ply) the lash. — 148. Studiisque faventum = 
with the eager acclamations of the favoring crowd. — 149. Inclusa 
= confined (by the hills). — 150. Clamore ; with pidsati. Resul- 
tant. The hills are said to rebound because the noise rebounds from 
them. — 151. Undis. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. —152. Tur- 
bam — fremitumque = amidst the confusion and noise ; i. e. of 
those whom Gyas is leaving behind. — 153. Remis ; for remigibus. 
Pondere ; with tarda. — 154. Aequo discrimine ; i. e. from the 
Scylla. — 156. Habet ; sc. locum priorem. — 157. Junctis . . . 
frontibus = with bows abreast — 160. Princeps = foremost. — 
162. Quo = whither. Mini. Gr. 389. A. & S. 228, N. (a). Dex- 
ter. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15 {a). So diversus, v. 166, and 
interior, x. 170. Gressum = cursum. — 163. Stringat. Gr. 493. 
2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 166. Iterum; with revocabat. — 167. Re- 
vocabat; i. e. a cursu quern ingressus erat. — 168. Tergo ; i. e. of 
his ship. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. Propiora ; sc. meiae. — 169. 
Hie ; Cloanthus. Radit — interior = skims along the left-hand 
way on the inside ; i. e. between Gyas and the rock. — 172. Exarsit 
— ingens = fierce anger blazed forth in the bones (i. e. the very soul) 
of the young man. Ossibus. Gr. 422. 1.2). A. & S. 254, R. 3. — 
174. Socium. Gr. 45. 5. 4). A. & S. 53. — 176. Rector . . . ma- 
gister = as helmsman ... as pilot. — 178. Gravis = moving slow- 
ly ; partly with age (senior) and partly with his soaked dress. — 183. 
Duobus. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. — 184. Mnesthei. Gr. 46. 5. 
A. & S. 54. 5. — 185. Ante locum = the (advantageous) position 
(i. e. the one towards the goal) before (the others). Scopuloque 
propinquat; not, as in v. 159, comes near the goal as he advances, 
but gets the near side to the goal. Cf. vv. 202, 203. — 186. Carina. 
Gr. 418. A. & S. 256, R. 16. So parte in next line. —189. Hec- 
torei socii = ye (former) associates of Hector. — 192. Gaetulis. 
Cf. v. 51. — 193. Maleae ; the southern promontory of Laconia. 
Sequacibus ; pursuing the ship, not each other. — 194. Prima = 
the first prize. — 195. Quamquam O ; sc. si possem vincere. Gr. 
704. I. 3. A. & S. 324. 33. — 196. Hoc vincite = gain this point. 
— 197. Nefas = a disgrace not to be named. — 199. Solum = the 
surface of the sea ; i. e. viewed as the support of the ship. — 201. 



62 O NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

Ipse . . . casus = mere chance. Viris ; the crew of the Pristis. 
Honorem ; of getting before the Centaur, and so not being last. — 
202. Animi. Gr. 399. 3. 4). A. & S. 213, R. 1 (a). —203. Inte- 
rior; between Mnestheus and the rock. See on v. 169, and cf. v. 185. 
Iniquo ; because too narrow. — 204. Procurrentibus = jutting 
out; probably underwater. Murice = a jagged rock; resembling 
a shell-fish. — 208. Cuspide. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 211. 
Agmine — vocatis = with the quick motion of the oars and with 
the winds at his call. See on III. 253. He calls the wind to his aid 
by hoisting the sail. Some understand it of formal invocation. — 212. 
Prona = sloping ; i. e. down towards the shore, as the sea plain ap- 
pears to one standing on the land. Aperto ; because there was no 
longer any rock near which they had to keep. — 214. Latebroso = 
hollow ; meaning probably no more than adapted for shelter. — 215. 
Exterrita . . . tecto = frightened from her covert. — 217. Radit = 
skims along. — 218. Ultima . . . aequora ; the part of the course 
remaining after the goal had been passed. — 220. Alto. Virg. prob- 
ably employed this word merely as an ordinary epithet of scopulo, 
without considering its special propriety here. — 221. Brevibus 
vadis = on the shoal waters ; i. e. near the rock. — 223. Conse- 
quitur = overtakes. Cedit ; sc. Chimaera. — 225. Fine ; i. e. of 
the course. — 228. Studiis. See on v. 148. — 229. Hi — teneant 
= these (the crew of the Scylla) think it unworthy of them not to re- 
tain the glory (already) their own and the honor (already) won. — 231. 
Hos ; the crew of the Pristis. — 232. Aequatis — rostris ; like 
junctis frontibus, v. 157. — 233. Ponto; for ad pontum. — 234. Di- 
vos — vocasset = and had called upon the gods to be parties to 
his vow. — 237. Voti reus = bound by my vow : lit. debtor of my 
vow. — 240. Nereidum. See on E. V. 75. Phorci ; a sea-god, the 
son of Pontus and Terra. Panopea. See on G. I. 437. — 241. 
Portunus; same as Melicertes or Palaemon. See on G. I. 437. 
Pater. See on G. II. 4. — 243. Condidit. See on G. I. 330. — 
249. Honores. See on I. 253. — 250. Auratam = embroidered 
with gold. — 251. Meliboea. See on III. 401. —252. Puer; 
Ganymedes. See on I. 28. Two scenes are represented, Gany- 
medes hunting and Ganymedes carried away. — 255. Jovis ar- 
miger ; i. e. the eagle. Cf. I. 394. — 257. In auras = at the sky : 
i. e. the dogs bay savagely at the eagle as he loses himself in the 
clouds. — 258. Qui ; Mnestheus. Virtute. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 
247. 1. — 259. See on III. 467. — 260. Demoleo; not mentioned 
in Horn., and perhaps invented by Virg. — 262. Viro ; after huic, 
as an appositive. — 263. Phegeus, Sagaris; personages created 
by Virg. — 264. Multiplicem ; referring to the numerous lines of 
chainwork. — 265. Cursu is emphatic : not only was he able to wear 



THE AENEID. BOOK V. 62 1 

the mail, but to run with it on him. — 267. Argento perfecta = 
arge7ito affabre facta. — 268. Jamque adeo. See on II. 567. — 269. 
Taenis for taeniis. Gr. 703. 2. A. & S. 322. 4. — 271. Ordine — 
uno = disabled in one tier. — 273. Viae . . . aggere = via aggesta ; 
or aggere may be the middle of the road, which was elevated a little, 
as with us. — 274. Obliquum = lying crosswise. Ictu. Gr. 429. 
A. & S. 250. 1. So parte and oculis, v. 277. Arduus. Gr. 443. 
A. & S. 205, R. 15. — 278. Vulnere clauda = maimed by the 
wound. — 279. Nexantem nodis = tying himself into knots ; for 
nexantem se in nodos. Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 281. Velis — 
plenis. Cf. I. 400. — 283. Servatam. Gr. 580. A. & S. 274, R. 
5 {a). — 284. Opemm . . . Minervae ; i. e. spinning, weaving, and 
embroidery. — 285. Genus. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. Nati ; sc. 
dantur. — 287. Curvis ; of a hill, as of a valley, II. 748. Collibus. 
Gr. 419. III. and 2. 1). A. & S. 249. I. — 288. Media — erat is 
coupled with quern — silvae, as though it had been et ubi theatri circus 
erat. Theatri circus = a circular space suitable for a show-ground. 
The valley with the surrounding hills formed a natural amphitheatre. 

— 290. Consessu (dat. for in consessum) = to the assembly. Ez- 
structo = on an elevated place : the part, used substantively. — 
291. Qui; sc. eorum, limiting animos. — 293. Sicani. See on I. 
557. — 294. Primi = foremost. — 295. Forma . . . juventa. Gr. 
414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. So amore in next verse. — 296. Pueri ; sc. 
Euryali. — 297. Regius = of royal blood. — 298. Hunc ; sc. secutus 
est. Acarnan ; an inhabitant of Acarnania, a small province in Greece. 

— 299. Ab. See on I. 550. Arcadio. See on E. IV. 58. Tege- 
aeae ; from Tegaea, a city of Arcadia. — 301. Acestae. See on 1. 195. 

— 304. Accipite . . . anirnis. See on III. 250. — 305. Mini 
Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. — 306. Gnosia. See on G. I. 222. — 
308. Honos. See on I. 253. — 309. Flava ; like pallenti olivae, 
E. V. 16. — 312. Circum is an adverb. Auro. Gr. 428. A. & S. 
211, R. 6. — 313. Fibula; a buckle enriched with a polished gem 
(abl. of quality). — 314. Abito. Gr. 537. A. & S. 267 (2). — 315. 
Locum = (their) ground. — 316. Corripiunt spatia = they dash 
on to the course. Spatia merely denotes the extent of the course. 
See on G. II. 541. Limen = the starting-point. — 317. Ultima 
signant (sc. spatia) = they mark the end of the course; i. e. with the 
eye. — 318. Omnia corpora = all the rest. — 320. Intervallo. 
Gr. 378. 2. A. & S. 236. — 323. Quo sub ipso = close up to 
whom. Ipso makes the proximity closer, as in III. 5. — 325, 326. 
Supersint, transeat ; the pres. subj. used rhetorically for the plu- 
perf, as in VI. 293, 294. See also on II. 599. — 326. Ambigu- 
umque relinquat = and would have left him behind (who is now) 
doubtful ; i. e. would have made him doubtful no longer, but clearly 



62 2 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

defeated. Ambignumve is the common reading, but every known MS. 
gives ambiguumque. See Con. ad loc. — 328. Sanguine. Gr. 414. 2. 
A. & S. 247. 1. — 330. Super (separated from fusus) = on the 
place. — 331. Presso . . . solo = qicum solum pressum esset. — 332. 
Titubata = tottering. Ipso ; with both fimo and cruore. — 334. 
Oblitus ; participle, like jactatus, I. 3. — 338. Plausu . . . fremitu. 
Gr. 414. 3. A. & S. 247. 2. — 339. Nunc ; having been originally 
fifth. Palma ; for victor, by meton. — 340. Caveae . . . ingentis 
= of the spacious theatre. Ora prima patrum. In the Roman 
theatre senators and distinguished persons occupied the front seats. 

— 344. Veniens = showing itself. — 346. Subiit = successit. Ad 
. . . venit = attained to. — 347. Reddantur ; i. e. as his due. See 
v. 386. — 349. Movet — nemo ; i. e. no one interferes with the 
order of the prizes as already awarded. — 350. Casus = the hard 
lot. — 352. Aureis. Gr. 669. II. A. & S. 306. 1. — 354. Me lap- 
sorum. Gr. 410 and III. A. & S. 229, R. 6. Niso ; sc. mihi. — 

355. Coronam; literally. Cf. v. 309. Laude. See on I. 461. — 

356. Tulisset. See on E. V. 34. — 357. Dictis. Gr. 437 and 2. 
A. & S. 241, R. 2. — 359. Efferri ; i. e. from the ships. Didy- 
maonis ; not elsewhere mentioned as an artist. Artes. Gr. 363. 
A. & S. 204. The plural for poetical variety. — 360. Danais. Gr. 
388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. The shield had been torn down from a 
Trojan temple by the soldiers of Pyrrhus and given by Helenus to 
Aeneas. — 362. Dona peregit — he has distributed all the gifts. 

— 363. Praesens == ready, prompt ; belonging only to animus. — 
364. Palmis. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257.-366. Velatum — vit- 
tisque = adorned with gold and fillets ; i. e. having the horns gilded 
and the brow decked with fillets. — 369. Murmure ; i. e. of appro- 
bation. — 371. Idemque = et qui. Quo. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 
254, R. 3. Occubat = sepultus jacet. — 372. Buten ; not otherwise 
known. Victorem ; i. e. qui omnes devicerat. Immani — ferebat 
= who stalked along with giant bulk, coming (as he did to Troy), 
one of the Bebrycian house of Amycus. See Con. ad loc. — 373. 
Bebrycia ; a poetical variety for Bebrycii, as Amycus was king of 
the Bebryces, the original inhabitants of Bithynia. — 375. Prima 
... in proelia = for the beginning of the fray. — 378. Quaeritur ; 
implying that the search still goes on. — 379. Adire = to confront. 

— 380. Alacris = elated. Excedere palma = were retiring from 
the prize ; i. e. were yielding it without a contest. — 381. Plura ; as 
an adverb. — 382. Turn. See on II. 391. — 384. Finis. Gr. 106. 
1. A. & S. 63. 1 (2). Cf. v. 328. Quo . . , usque: tmesis. — 385. 
Ducere ; seme. Cuncti — fremebant. See on I. 559. — 386. 
Reddi. See on v. 347. — 387. Gravis . . . castigat = seriously 
chides. — 389. Fortissime frustra. See on II. 348. — 391. No- 



THE AENEID. BOOK V. 623 

bis. Gr. 389. A. & S. 228, N. {a). Magister — memoratus = 
celebrated in vain as your master. — 392. Eryx. See on v. 24 and 

I. 570. — 393. Tuis . . . tectis = from thy roof. — 394. Sub haec. 
See on G. I. 340. — 395. Sed enim. See on I. 19. Here the ellip- 
sis may be supplied thus : sed (non sine catcsa cunctor) enim. — 397. 
Qua. Gr. 419. II. A. & S. 245. II. 1. Improbus iste = your 
shameless braggart. — 400. Deinde. See on v. 14. — 402. Qui- 
bus. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. In proelia . . . ferre manum 
= to engage in the close encounter : lit. to bear the hand for battle. 
— 403. Intendere — tergo. See on II. 236. Here the notion of 
binding is prominent. — 406. Longe recusat = utterly shrinks 
(from them). Forb. says diu. — 407. Pondus . . . volumina ver- 
sat : a sort of zeugma. Aeneas feels the weight, and turns the 
gauntlets wonderingly over and over. — 411. Tristem ; because 
fatal to Entellus's friend and master. — 412. Germanus Eryx. 
See on v. 24. — 413. Sanguine . . . cerebro ; i. e. of those whom 
he had slain in his time. — 414. His. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. 
Alciden. See on E. VII. 61. — 414. Aemula. Old age is re- 
garded as a rival to vigorous youth, which it seeks to impair. — 418. 
Id may refer to Aequemus pugnas, but it agrees better with Latin 
usage to refer it to something implied in the previous line ; e. g. his 
armis non esse utendum. Sedet. See on II. 660. Auctor = (who 
is my) adviser. — 419. Terga = gauntlets. — 423. Exuit = lays 
bare ; sc. vestibus. — 426. In digitos ; with arrectus. — 429. Im- 
miscent — manibus is said of the preliminary sparring, which pro- 
vokes or brings on the encounter (pugnam lacessunt). — 431. Mem- 
bris et mole. Gr. 704. II. 2. A. & S. 323. 2 (3). Valens = pow- 
erful. — 433. Vulnera = blows. So in v. 436. — 437. Gravis = 
firm ; i. e. by his own weight. Nisu . . . eodem = in the same tense 
posture. — 433. Corpore — exit; i. e. he eludes the blows by a 
slight motion of the body and by vigilance. Tela. Gr. 371. 3. A. 
& S. 233 (3) N. — 439. Molibus = engines. — 444. A vertice. 
See on G. II. 310. — 446. Ultro ; i. e. without any impulse from 
Dares. — 447. Ipse repeats the notion of ultro. Gravis graviter- 
que. As in v. 118, the same thought is enforced twice by a partially 
verbal repetition. — 448. Quondam = sometimes. Cf. II. 367. 
Erymantho ; a mountain in Arcadia. — 449. Ida. See on Ov. M. 

II. 218. — 450. Consurgunt studiis; i. e. they rise eagerly from 
their seats and rush to the spot. — 451. Coelo. See on II. 186. — 
454. Vim — ira = kindles violence with anger. Se suscitat ira, A. 
XII. 108, as well as ac, shows that ira is here abl. — 457. Ille has a 
rhetorical force, fixing attention on the person who is spoken of. — 
459. Sic ; instead of tarn multis, the regular correlative of quam 
multa. Notice the accumulation of frequentatives in this and the fol- 



624 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

lowing line. —466. Vires — numina = other strength (i. e. than at 
the beginning of the contest : it being either simply increased or 
superseded by divine power) and that the powers of heaven have 
changed sides. At the opening of the fight Entellus fell, and the 
advantage seemed to be on the side of Dares. — 467. Deo maybe 
understood either of Eryx, helping Entellus (cf. v. 483), or generally 
of the will of heaven, as in I. 199 and IV. 651. Que . . . et = both 
. . . and. — 471. Vocati ; i. e. by the herald. Cf. vv. 244 foil. — 
472. Palmam; lit. of a palm-branch. See on v. in. — 473. Hie. 
See on I. 728. Superans = elated. — 476. Servetis revocatum 
= have rescued and are preserving. See on I. 69. — 477. Adversi 
= facing (him). — 478. Pugnae ; gen. with donum. Cf. v. 365. — 
480. Arduus = rising to the stroke. Effracto — cerebro = and 
drove them into the skull and dashed out the brains. — 483. Melio- 
rem ; because a more fitting sacrifice. — 484. Repono. Relinquish- 
ing forever the practice of the pugilistic art, he devotes, as was cus- 
tomary, the arms of his profession (artem) to his patron god. — 487. 
Ingenti manu ; expressing the gigantic stature of the hero {ingentem 
Aenean, VI. 413), and showing how he could set up the mast himself. 
Cf. magna manu, v. 241. — 488. Volucrem (= winged) implies the 
notion of fluttering. Trajecto in fune = by a rope tied around (it) : 
lit. passed across. — 490. Sortem. Sors is used generally in the 
sing, as opposed to other modes of choice, like the English "the lot," 
" by lot," and this probably accounts for its use here, though as a 
matter of fact there was a lot for each competitor. — 492. Hyrta- 
cidae. Hippocoon seems to be the brother of Nisus, who was also 
son of Hyrtacus, A. IX. 177. Ante omnes ; after primus, II. 40. 
Locus; the place, for the lot fixing the place. — 493. Modo = 
lately. Victor ; though he was only the second winner. — 494. 
Oliva; i. e. the wreath he had won in the boat-race. — 495. Eury- 
tion ; not otherwise known, but appropriately made the brother of 
Pandarus, the great archer (darissime) of the early part of the Iliad, 
who, instigated (jussus) by Minerva, broke the truce with the Greeks 
by shooting an arrow into their midst. — 498. Acestes; for the lot 
of Acestes. —499. Et = etiam. — 500. Flexos incurvant =fec- 
tunt et incurvant. — 501. Pro se — according to his ability. — 502. 
Nervo. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. — 505. Timuit — pennis ; i.e. 
showed its fear by fluttering and clapping its wings. Gr. 429. A. & S. 
250. 1. — 506. Plausu; i. e. of the spectators. Some take it of the 
bird's wings, as in the parallel v. 215, but the epithet ingenti seems to 
forbid this. — 507. Arcu ; including and specially referring to the 
string. — 511. Quis. Gr. 187. 1. A. & S. 136, R. 2. Pedem. Gr. 
380. A. & S. 234. II. — 513. Rapidus ; because the bird would 
soon be out of his reach. Arcu. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3. 



THE AENEID. BOOK V. 625 

Contenta = stretched. — 514. Fratrem ; Pandarus, regarded after 
death as a deified patron of archery, as Eryx is Entellus's patron of 
boxing. In vota vocavit. See on v. 234. — 515. Vacuo . . . 
coelo ; i. e. high up in air. — 521. Pater = as a veteran. — 522. 
Magno . . . augurio = of high portent. Gr. 428. A. & S. 21 1, R. 6. 
— 523. Docuit — ingens = the great event afterwards showed this. 
What event Virg. had in mind is doubtful. The various views of the 
commentators are all, to say the least, quite as unsatisfactory as the 
old interpretation, which referred it to the burning of the ships, vv. 
659 foil. — 524. Sera ; because the omen was not correctly inter- 
preted till after its fulfilment, when it was too late to avert the evil. — 
525. Liquidis ; of clouds generally as opposed to solid matter like 
earth. — 526. Signavit, etc. See on II. 693 foil. — 527. Coelo. 
Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 {b). Refixa = loosened. — 528. 
Crinem = a trail of light. — 529. Attonitis — animis = stood 
fixed with astonishment. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 533. Voluit 
= has indicated his will. — 534. Exsortem — honorem = should 
receive an extraordinary prize. The proper application of the word 
exsortem is to a thing exempted from the ordinary division of the 
spoil by lot and given to some distinguished person. Here it is ap- 
plied to the prize, of superior value to the rest, which is given to 
Acestes as an extraordinary thing. — 537. In — munere = for a 
great gift ; instead of in munus, or muneri. Cisseus ; a king of 
Thrace, and father of Hecuba, the wife of Priam. — 538. Sui = 
of himself. It may however be sui amoris. — 541. Bonus = good- 
natured ; i. e. kindly yielding his right. Praelato — honori = 
grudged the prize set above (his own). — 543. Ingreditur donis 
=» enters on the gifts, attains the gifts. Gr. 386. A. & S. 224. — 
545. Nondum — misso. Aeneas gives his directions before the 
shooting-match is over, that the procession may come on at once, 
and the surprise be complete. — 546. Comitem. Comes may be 
used of a senior attendant, or of one of equal age. — 547. Epyti- 
den. See on II. 340. — 548. Vade age. See on III. 462. Si — 
paratum ; implying that he had been previously told to do so. — 
550. Ducat. Gr. 493. 2. , A. & S. 262, R. 4. So ostendat. Avo 
= in honor of his grandfather. — 551. Ipse ; Aeneas. Longo . . . 
circo = from the long show-ground. The circus, in spite of its name, 
was not circular, but oblong. — 552. Infusum populum = the 
crowd that had poured in ; i. e. during the games of boxing and 
archery, which would not require a large field. — 553. Pariter ex- 
presses the general uniformity and symmetry of their appearance and 
movements. — 554. Quos — euntes = all of whom as they go ; 
with mirata, not /remit, which does not take the ace. of a person. — 
556. Omnibus — corona = the hair of all was bound according 
40 



626 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

to rule with a wreath of stripped leaves ; tonsa . . . corona being = to 
corona tonsae frondis. — 558. Pectore. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, 
R. 3. — 560. Numero. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. Terni; for tres. 
Vagantur here and in VI. 886 is used of movement without any 
certain destination. — 562. Agmine partito ; i. e. the whole band 
being divided into three companies as just described. Gr. 431. A. 
& S. 257. So magistris. Fulgent ; like lucent, v. 554, of bright 
armor and general gay appearance. — 563. Acies ; sc. est. — 564. 
Referens = reproducing. It was customary to give the grandson 
the grandfather's name. Polite. See II. 526 foil. — 565. Auctura 
may include the notion of bringing honor to the Italian nations as 
well as that of multiplying their numbers. Thracius. Thrace 
was famous for horses. — 566. Bicolor — dappled. Vestigia — 
pedis = white fore-feet. — 567. Arduus = (carrying) high (his 
head). — 568. Alter = the second. Atys . . . Atii; a compliment 
to Augustus, whose mother belonged to the Atian gens. — 569. 
Pueroque puer. Gr. 596. A. & S. 279. 4. Cf. I. 684 ; III. 329. 
Iulo. See on sorori, IV. 31. —572. Esse. Gr. 553. V. A. & S. 
271, N. 3. — 575. Pavidos = trembling ; i. e. through the modesty 
and' timidity natural to boys. At this point Virg. goes back to v. 
555, the intermediate lines simply describing their appearance as they 
were seen to enter. — 576. Parentum need not be restricted to 
parents, but may include remoter ancestry. — 578. Lustravere = 
had passed in review before. — 580-582. Olli — tulere. The 
simplest explanation of this passage is to suppose the three turmae 
each to divide into two parts (ckori), of six horsemen each, one part 
retiring to the right, the other to the left, after which the three right 
ckori and the three left turn about and severally charge each other. 
Discurrere pares, according to Virgil's wont, is explained by the fol- 
lowing clause. Translate : they rode apart keeping in line (pares), 
and by threes divided the companies (the original turmae) into sep- 
arate bands (ckori), and again, when summoned, faced about and 
bore hostile weapons. — 583-585. Inde — armis = then they 
(the ckori) enter upon other charges and other retreats, opposed 
in point of ground, and alternately intersect circles with circles, and 
present the image of a battle under arms. — 587. Pariter . . . ferun- 
tur = they (i. e. the six ckori) ride side by side (in the same direc- 
tion). — 589 - 591. Parietibus — caecis = constructed with blind 
walls ; i. e. walls without door or window. Gr. 669. II. 3. A. & S. 
306. 1 (3). Ancipitem — error = and to have had a complicated 
maze of a thousand passages (Gr. 428 ; A. & S. 211, R. 6), in con- 
sequence of which (see on G. I. 90) error undiscovered and irretrace- 
able rendered deceptive (Gr. 501. I ; A. & S. 264. 1 (a) and [b) ) the 
marks of tracking (one's way). — 593. Impediunt; as in v. 585. — 



THE AENEID. BOOK V. 627 

594. Delphinum. Gr. 399. 3. 2). A. & S. 222, R. 2 (a). — 595. 
Carpathium. See on Hor. C. I. 35. 8. — 598. Rettulit = re- 
newed, revived. — 599. Puer. Gr. 363 and 3. A. & S. 204 and R. 
1 (a). — 601. Patrium . . . honorem = the ancestral observance. 

— 602. Troja. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. — 603. Hac . . . terms: 
tmesis. Sancto = deified. Patri. See on v. 550. — 604. For- 
tuna — novavit = fickle Fortune was treacherous : lit. Fortune 
having changed herself made new (i. e. broke) her faith. — 605. 
Tumulo. See on avo, v. 550. — 606. Irim. See on Ov. M. I. 
270. Cf. IV. 694. — 607. Ventosque adspirat. See on IV. 223. 

— 608. Multa movens. Cf. III. 34. Necdum — dolorem. 
Cf. I. 25. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 609. Coloribus. Gr. 428. 
A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 610. NulH. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. 
Cito . . . tramite = along the swift (i. e. because sloping) pathway. 
Virgo. Gr. 363. A. & S. 204. — 615. Flentes = as they wept. 
Vada = waters. — 616. Superesse. See on me — desistere, I. 37. 
Vox . . . una = (this) was the common cry of all. — 617. Urbem 
orant. See on I. 437. — 620. Beroe. Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. She 
is not mentioned elsewhere. Tmarii = of Tmaros ; a mountain in 
Epirus. Dorycli. Doryclus in Horn, is a son of Priam, killed by 
Ajax. — 621. Cui probably refers to Beroe. Genus = family ; i. e. 
ancestors of note. — 622. Sic ; i. e. thus changed. Dardanidum. 
See on I. 560. Gr. 42. 3. 3.) A. & S. 43. 2. Matribus ; not those 
who had given birth to Trojans, but the matrons of the Trojan nation. 

— 623. Miserae. Cf. I. 94 foil. ; III. 321 foil. Manus = band. 
Bello. Gr. 426. 1. A. & S. 253, N. 1. — 624. Traxerit. Gr. 519. 
A. & S. 264. 8(1). — 626. Vertitur = is passing. — 627. Quum = 
during which time. Join freta and terras with ferimur (cf. the pre- 
cisely parallel expression, I. 524), saxa and sidera with emensae. 
Saxa are the rocks which aggravated the difficulties of navigation. 
Inhospita ; referring probably to saxa alone, and not to sidera. — 
628. Sidera ; the constellations as the chart for sailing. — 630. 
Fraterni. See on v. 24. — 632. Nequidquam ; because they 
seemed destined never to find a home. — 635. Quin agite = come 
on, then. — 636. Cassandrae. See on II. 246. — 638. Tempus. 
Gr. 362. A. & S. 210. Agi res. Gr. 549. A. & S. 269.-639. 
Mora; sc. sit. Quatuor arae. They may have been erected for 
the purpose of sacrificing for a prosperous voyage, or by the captains 
of the four ships before engaging in the race. — 642. Procul = swung 
back. — 645. Pyrgo ; not named elsewhere. — 646. Vobis. See 
on v. 391. Rhoeteia= Trojana. — 648. Qui — illi =what a di- 
vine air she has ! — 652. Munere ; i. e. the privilege of celebrating 
the festival in honor of Anchises. Inferret. See on III. 66. — 655. 
Ambiguae = hesitating. Spectare. Gr. 545. 1. A. & S. 209, R 



628 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

5. Miserum ; i. e. strong, excessive. — 656. Fatis = according to 
destiny. — 657. Paribus . . . alis. Cf. IV. 252. — 660. Focis 
penetralibus ; i. e. the hearths in the penetralia of the neighboring 
houses. — 661. Frondem = boughs. — 662. Vulcanus. See on 
G. I. 295. — 663. Pictas — puppes = painted sterns made of fir. 
See on G. I. 262. — 664. Cuneos = the seats. — 665. Eumelus; 
not known elsewhere. — 666. Respiciunt = look back and see. — 
669. Castra may refer either to the ships or to the settlements of 
the Trojans near them. — 672. Spes. See on III. 103. — 675. 
Simul . . . simul. See on I. 513. — 677. Sicubi = wheresoever 
(they are). — 683. Est. See on IV. 66. Vapor = fire; effect for 
cause, but suggesting both heat and smoke as distinguished from 
bright flame. Toto — pestis = the destructive element sinks into 
and pervades the whole frame of the vessels. — 685. Abscindere. 
Gr. 545. 1. A. & S. 209, R. 5. — 687. Si. See on II. 689. — 688. 
Quid. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). Pietas. See on II. 536. — 
689. Classi; with da. — 690. Tenues . . . res = the reduced for- 
tunes. — 691. Quod superest = that which (alone) remains; i. e. 
to complete my ruin. — 694. Sine more = with uncommon fury. — 
696. Turbidus = murky. Densis = thick, driving. — 697. Super 
= desuper. — 698. Vapor. See on v. 683. — 699. Peste. See on 
v. 683. — 702. Mutabat versans == was shifting, deliberating. — 
704. Tritonia. See on Ov. M. III. 127. Unum = singled out 
from the rest, in an especial degree. Units in this sense is generally 
found in Virg. combined with some word implying comparison. See 
on I. 15; II. 426. — 705. Multa — arte = for his great skill (in 
prophecy). Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. — 706. Haec, etc. = she 
(Pallas) was accustomed to give, either such responses as the great 
wrath of the gods portended, or such as, etc. Lines 706, 707 are in- 
troduced parenthetically to explain the nature of the power given by 
Pallas to Nautes. — 708. Isque = and therefore he (Z. 333) ; a case 
of anacoluthon (Gr. 704. III. 4. A. & S. 323. 3 (5) ), isque taking up 
the sentence unfinished in vv. 704, 705, and thus leaving Nautes with- 
out any predicate. The common punctuation makes Nautes the sub- 
ject of dabat, and haec agree with responsa ; but the tense of dabat and 
the clauses vel quae, etc. are plainly general, and on the whole any 
other construction seems more forced and harsh than the anacoluthon. 
Solatus. See on G. I. 293. — 710. Quidquid erit = whatever 
shall happen. — 711. Diviuae stirpis. See on v. 38. — 712. Con- 
siliis socium = as the partner of your counsels. Gr. 391. A. & S. 
222. 3. Volentem. Nautes guarantees the readiness of Acestes to 
act. — 713. Superant = are superfluous ; meaning the crews of the 
four burnt ships. Quos pertaesum est = who have become weary. 
— 715. Fessas aequore. Cf. vv. 615 foil. — 717. Habeant . . . 



THE AENEID. BOOK V. 629 

I 

sine. See on v. 163. — 718. Permisso ; i. e. by Aeneas as a com- 
pliment to Acestes. — 720. Animo. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 
725. Exercete. See on III. 182. — 728. Pulcherrima ; construe 
with antecedent clause. — 729. Lectos . . . fortissima ; emphatic : 
he was to take none but picked and brave men. — 732. Averna. 
See on III. 386. Near it was supposed to be the entrance to the 
lower world. — 733. Congressus . . . meos = an interview with 
me. Namque. See on E. I. 14. — 734. Tartara. See on G. I. 
36. — 735. Elysium ; the abode of the blest after death, placed by 
Virg. in the lower world. Sibylla See III. 443 foil. — 736. San- 
guine. Gr. 414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 739. Saevus ; because break- 
ing in on the intercourse between father and son. Oriens. See on 
G. I. 250. — 741. Deinde =now ; conveying a reproach for not re- 
maining longer. Proripis ; sc. se. Cf. E. III. 19. — 744. Larem ; 
either the tutelary divinity of his family, or (sing, for plu.) the Penates, 
with which the Lares are often confounded. Canae. See on I. 292. 
Penetralia Vestae ; for Vestam. — 745. Farre ; same as mola salsa. 

— 750. Transcribunt = transfer ; i. e. by enrolling their names 
among the citizens of the new city. Populumque volentem ; i. e. 
the men who desired to remain. — 751. Amnios. Gr. 363. A. & S. 
204. Laudis. Gr. 409. 1. A. & S. 220. 3. — 753. Navigiis. Gr. 
384. II. A. & S. 223 and N. — 754. Numero. Gr. 429. A. & S. 
250. 1. Bello (dat. for ad bellum) vivida = ardent for war. — 755. 
Urbem — aratro ; alluding to the custom of marking out the limits 
of a new city by a furrow. — 756. Hoc Ilium, haec — Trojam ; i. e. 
he gives names to different quarters of the city. — 758. Indicit — 
vocatis = and institutes a court and gives laws to the assembled 
fathers ; i. e. to the senators. — 759. Erycino. Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 
211, R. 4 {a). So Anckises, v. 761. See on I. 570. — 760. Idaliae. 
See on I. 681. — 762. Aris. Gr. 422. 1. A. & S. 254, R. 3.-764. 
Creber et adspirans = blowing fresh and favorable. — 766. Com- 
plex! See on G. I. 206. — 769. Fugae. See on III. 160. — 771. 
Consanguineo = their kinsman ; as being half Trojan. See v. 38. 

— 773. Caedere . . . solvi. See on III. 60, 61. Ex ordine ; same 
as ordine in v. 53 and III. 548, the reference here being to the previ- 
ous sacrifices. — 774. Tonsae . . . olivae. See on v. 556. — 781. 
Nee exsaturabile; for etinexsaturabile. The word is found nowhere 
else. — 783. Dies ; for tempus. — 784. Infracta = checked. — 785. 
Media de gente. Juno is not satisfied with having torn Troy as it 
were out of the heart of Phrygia. Nefandis. See on G. I. 479. — 
786. Traxe. Gr. 234. 3. A. & S. 162. 7 (c). — 788. Sciat illa = 
she may know ; I do not. Gr. 485. A. & S. 260. II. — 789. Libycis 
... in undis ; with excierit. — 790. Coelo. Gr. 385. 5. A. & S. 223, 
R. 2. Maria — miscuit is one form of a proverbial expression, the 



630 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

other form of which is given in I. 133. — 793. Per scelus=to 
crime ; with actis ; per suggesting the various steps from the incep- 
tion to the execution of a criminal act. — 794. Classe . . . amissa ; 
an exaggeration, though the words are qualified in v. 796. Subegit; 
sc. Aeneam. Terrae. Gr. 424. 3. 2). A. & S. 221, R. 3 (4). — 796. 
Quod superest = as to that which remains ; i. e. of the ships and 
their crews. Of various interpretations this on the whole best suits 
the context, and is most consistent with v. 691. Dare tuta . . . vela 
tibi = to intrust their sails safely to you. — 797. Laurentem. The 
Tiber was so called from Laitrentum, the capital of Latium. — 798. 
Ea moenia, as no city has been mentioned, takes for granted the 
previous knowledge of Neptune. — 800. Cytherea. See on I. 257. 

— 801. Merui ; sc. fideres. — 803. Xanthum — testor is ex- 
plained by what follows. — 809. Dis . . . viribus. Gr. 431. A. & S. 
257, R. 7 (a). Aequis ; i. e. to those of his opponent. — 810. Quum 
= although. Structa — Trojae. See on Hor. C. III. 3. 22. — 812. 
Portus . . . Averni is the harbor of Cumae. See on III. 441, 442. 

— 814. Unus ; Palinurus. — 816. Laeta ; proleptic. — 817. Auro 
= by means of the golden yoke. — 818. Manibus == from his 
hands. — 821. Aquis = in respect to its waters. — 822. Cete. 
Gr. 95. 1. A. & S. 94. — 823. Glauco. See on G. I. 437. So 
Palaemon and Panopea. — 824. Tritones. See on Ov. M. 1. 333. 
Phorci. See on v. 240. — 825. Laeva ; neut. plu. Thetis. See 
on E. IV. 32. Melite ; one of the Nereids. So all mentioned in the 
next line. — 829. Intendi velis = the sail-yards to be stretched ; 
meaning that sails are stretched on the yards. Gr. 429. A. & S. 
250. 1. — 830. Una — pedem = they all tacked together. Pedes 
were ropes attached to the two lower corners of a square sail. These 
were fastened to the sides of the vessel towards the stern, an opera- 
tion briefly expressed by fecere. Pariterque — sinus = and at the 
same time let out now the left-hand sheets and now the right. This 
is done to catch the wind as it shifts. — 832. Cornua = the extremi- 
ties of the sail-yards. These are turned this way and that as the sail 
is shifted. Sua = favorable. — 834. Ad = after, according to. — 
835. Mediam . . . metam ; i. e. the zenith. — 839. Dimovit . . . 
dispulit ; i. e. simply by flying through them. — 840. Bomnia ; for 
somnos. — 841. Insonti ; because he did not yield to sleep volun- 
tarily. — 842. Phorbanti ; a name borrowed for one of Palinurus's 
comrades. — 844. Aequatae . . . aurae. See on IV. 587. — 845. 
Labori. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. A rare construction. — 
847. Attollens . . . lumina ; i. e. to look at the pretended Phorbas. 

— 848. Salis. See on I. 35. — 849. Ignorare ; i. e. to act as if I 
did not know it. Monstro. The sea is so called because of its 
treacherous and dangerous character. — 850. Credam ; sc. ei 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 63 1 

(monstro). Auris ; with deceptus. — 851. Fraude = by the 
treachery. — 853. Nusquam = nunquam. Sub = up toward. — 
856. Cunctanti = to (him) resisting (it). Solvit = relaxes ; op- 
posed to the unremitting tension that Palinurus had kept up. — 857. 
Vix . . . et. See on II. 172. Primos ; for primum. We should 
say, scarcely had sleep begun to relax his limbs. — 861. Ipse . . . 
ales ; i. e. Somnus. — -863. Promissis = in accordance with the 
promise. — 864. Jamque adeo. See on II. 567. Sirenum. See 
on Hor. E. I. 2. 23. — 866. Rauca ; with sonabant. — 870, 871. 
These lines are the words of Aeneas, as we learn from the beginning 
of the next book. — 871. The loss of burial was a great misfortune, 
but to lie unburied on a foreign shore was sorrow upon sorrow. 



THE AENEID. Book VI. 

The celebrity of the Sixth Book of the Aeneid is one of those broad 
and acknowledged facts before which minute criticism is almost pow- 
erless. There is indeed no part of the work which more completely 
exemplifies the characteristics of Virgil as a poetical artist. He ap- 
pears not only to reproduce Homer, but to absorb him. Aeneas sees 
all, or nearly all, that Ulysses sees, — his parent, his friends, his ene- 
mies, and the heroes and heroines of previous legend : but he sees 
much more besides. Instead of a place of simply ghostly existence, 
where suffering and doing seem to be the exceptions, and dreary, ob- 
jectless being the rule, we have a territory mapped out and sharply 
divided, — a neutral region for those who are unfortunate rather than 
blameworthy, a barred and bolted prison-house of torture for the bad, 
a heroic Valhalla for prowess, genius, and worth. All that later Greek 
religion and philosophy taught by legend, allegory, and symbol, is 
pressed into the service of poetry, and made to contribute to the pro- 
duction of a grand and impressive picture. As a climax to the whole, 
the Pythagorean doctrine of transmigration is invoked for the purpose 
of showing Aeneas the vision of the future, as he has already seen 
the vision of the past. He beholds the spirits that are to appear 
as actors in the great drama of Roman history, each even now wear- 
ing his historical form ; and the line of worthies ends with the young 
hope of the nation, whose untimely death was still fresh in the mem- 
ory of his countrymen when the poet wrote. 



632 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 



ARGUMENT. 

Aeneas having landed at Cumae, immediately seeks the cave of 
the Sibyl, and consults the oracle : from it he learns some particulars 
of his dangers and further labors (1 - 155). He performs funeral rites 
to the body of Misenus ; and while engaged in the preparations for 
this ceremony, discovers the golden bough, which, as a gift to Proser- 
pina, would gain for him permission to pass to the Elysian shades, to 
meet and converse with his father Anchises. Provided with it and 
accompanied by the Sibyl, he reaches the entrance to the infernal 
regions (156-336). On the hither side of the Styx he meets with the 
shade of his quondam pilot Palinurus, and after receiving from him a 
detailed account of the circumstances attending his death, he promises 
to perform to him the due obsequies on his return to earth, and to 
erect a cenotaph (337-383). Crossing the Styx, he traverses the dis- 
trict occupied by the spirits of infants, and of those who had been 
unjustly put to death, and enters that where wander in solitude ill- 
requited lovers, — their own murderers. In this latter place he falls 
in with Dido, who, however, indignantly declines a conversation (384- 
476). In the region of slain warriors, Deiphobus, among others, pre- 
sents himself, all mangled as he was (477 - 534). He passes Tartarus 
on the right, and is instructed by the Sibyl in all the varieties of pun- 
ishment, which were inflicted on the grossly wicked in the abode set 
apart for them (535-627). He next reaches the palace of Dis, and, 
having fixed the golden bough on the entrance, directs his course to 
the habitations of the blessed, and, under the guidance of Musaeus, 
at length finds Anchises (628-678). Having fully discoursed on the 
nature of the soul, its purification, and the processes necessary to 
bring about final perfection, Anchises lays briefly before Aeneas the 
history of the Roman empire,'which his posterity are to found (679 - 
888). On the conclusion of the interview our hero and his guide 
ascend to earth again through the ivory gate, the Sibyl departing 
to her cave, and Aeneas to his fleet, which he moors at Caieta. 

1. Classique — habenas ; i. e. he spreads his sails to the wind. 
Cf. V. 662 and Ov. M. I. 280. — 2. Cumae. See on III. 441. — 3. 
In heroic times, ships were brought to land stern foremost, for con- 
venience in putting to sea again. — 4. Fundabat ; i. e. fundo alliga- 
tas tenebat. — 7, 8. Venis. Cf. G. I. 135. On the whole passage cf. 
A. I. 1 74 foil. Pars — silvas probably refers to scouring the woods 
for game, water, etc. Cf. I. 184 foil. Some understand it of getting 
fuel. Tecta ; appositive of silvas. — 9 - 13. The Sibyl's cave is the 
adytum of the temple of Apollo, which seems to have been on the 
slope of a hill (hence arces), with the sacred grove (Triviae lucos) 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 6$$ 

on both sides and in front. On Trivia = Hecate, cf. IV. 609. Al- 
tus = majestic ; or it may refer either to arces, or to the size of the 
statue, which Serv. says was fifteen feet high. Horrendae ; i. e. 
when inspired by the god. Cf. 47 foil., 77 foil. Procul ; at some 
distance from the landing. Cui = into whom ; with inspirat. Some 
make it = whose. Cf. I. 304. Mentem ; prophetic insight. Ani- 
mum; energy of expression. Delius. See on III. 162. — 14-17. 
For the story of Daedalus, see Ov. M. VIII. Introd. Pennis; instru- 
mental abl. Coelo; dat. with credere. Enavit. Cf. IV. 245. 
Arctos. See on Ov. M. I. 132, 171. Chalcidica. See on v. 2. — 
19. Cf I. 534. Templa ; also a votive offering. — 20 - 22. Letum ; 
sc. erat Androgeo. Gr. 46. 3. 1). A. & S. 54. 1. He was the 
son of Minos, and (according to one of several legends) was killed by 
rivals who envied his success in the Panathenaic games. It was be- 
cause of his death that Minos exacted of the Athenians (Cecropidae, 
from Cecrops, the founder of Athens) the tribute (poenas) here men- 
tioned. Turn indicates the transition to a second sculpture. Cor- 
pora. Cf. II. 18. Stat — uma. = stat urna, et sortes inde ducuntur. 
— 23. Contra and respondet imply that the Cretan sculptures 
were a pendant to the Athenian. Gnosia. See on G. I. 222. On 
elata mari cf. alta, V. 588. — 24-26. Crudelis ; since the passion 
for the beautiful bull was a punishment from Venus, whom she had 
offended. Supposta = substituted. Furto =fiirtim. Mixtum 
genus is explained by proles biformis. Veneris = amoris. Monu- 
menta ; plu. for sing, referring only to the Minotaur. — 27 - 31. 
Domus ; gen. with labor. Some make it an appositive of labor. 
Cf. description of the Labyrinth, V. 588 foil. Reginae ; not Pasi- 
phae, but her daughter Ariadne. Cf. I. 273. Sed enim. See on 
I. 19. Amorem ; i. e. for Theseus, to whom (not to reginae) ves- 
tigia refers. Ipse ; even he, the framer of the maze. Icare. See 
on Ov. M. VIII. Introd. Sineret ; sc. si. Gr. 510 ; 503. 1 ; 504. 2. 
A. & S. 261, R. 1 and R. 5. — 32, 33. Conatus erat ; sc. Daedalus, 
implied in patriae = the father's, as in I. 643. Protinus = suc- 
cessively. Omnia; a dissyllable. See on tenuia, G. I. 397. — 34- 
36. Perlegerent . . . afferent. For the tense see on sineret, v. 
31. Deiphobe ; one of several names given to the Cumaean Sibyl. 
Glauci = (the daughter) of Glaucus, perhaps the prophetic sea-god. 
Gr. 397. i (1). A. & S. 211, R. 7 (1). Regi; Aeneas. — 37-39. 
Ista = these that you are gazing at. Intacto; that have never been 
yoked. Praestiterit. Gr. 485. A. &. S. 260, R. 4. Bidentes. 
See on IV. 57. — 41. They had been standing before the gate, and 
now are summoned within. — 42-44. A description of the adytum, 
which, as at Delphi, was a cavern in the rock. Euboicae rupis ; 
the hill of Cumae. Ingens ; with latus. Aditus . . . ostia ; a sort 



634 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

of hendiadys : aditus per centum (i. e. multd) lata ostia. They would 
seem to be the doors between the adytum and the temple. — 45. Li- 
men ; sc. antri. Poscere fata is explained by vv. 51, 52. The 
sacrifices had been performed, but prayer was still necessary to obtain 
the responses, and this was the time for prayer, since the god had 
manifested himself. For the construction see on G. I. 213. — 46. 
Cui. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 47. Unus = the same 
(as before). — 49, 50. Rabie ; with tument. Videri ; with major. 
Cf. niveus videri, Hor. C. IV. 2. 59. Gr. 552. 3. A. & S. 270, R. 1. 
The Sibyl seems to increase in stature under the divine afflatus. — 50. 
Mortale. Cf. I. 328. — 51. Cessas in vota; i. e. cessas vota facer e? 
Forb. compares audere in proelia, II. 347. — 52. Ante ; sc. quam 
feceris vota. — 53. Attonitae ; referring to the spellbound silence 
which prevents the opening (Henry). — 54, 55. Cf. II. 120. — 56. 
Cf. I. 597.-57. Direxti. Gr. 234. 3. A. & S. 162. 7 (c). — 58. 
Aeacidae. See on I. 99. — 59. Penitusque repostas = longe re- 
motas. Cf. III. 364. — 60. Massylum. See on IV. 132. Syrtibus ; 
abl. C£ IV. 172 (Con.). Many make it dat. like sinu, III. 692. — 
62. Hac . . . tenus : tmesis. Fuerit. Gr. 487. A. & S. 260, R. 6. 
Trojana fortuna is said bitterly : Troy's usual fortune. — 66-68. 
Venturi = the future. Gr. 399. 2. 2). A. & S. 213, R. 1. Non — 
fatis; parenthetical. Fatis ; dat, like fatis debitus Arruns, XI. 759, 
or abl., like fatis mihi debita tellus, VII. 120. Da . . . considere. 
Cf. V. 689. — 71 - 76. Aeneas promises the Sibyl that her oracular 
books (see on Hor C. S. 5) shall be deposited in a temple. Lectos 
viros ; i. e. the quindecimviri. Alma. See on G. I. 7. Tantum 
is common in adjurations. Foliis, etc. Cf. III. 444. Canas ; sc. 
ut. Cf. III. 457. — 77-80. Phoebi nondum patiens=not yet 
yielding to Phoebus ; i. e. struggling against the divine possession, 
which is a painful strain upon her mortal nature. Immanis ; ad- 
verbially with bacchatur. Possit. See on recurras, Hor. S. II. 
6. 31, and cf. A. I. 181, etc. Excussisse ; aoristic perf. So patuere, 
v. 81. Fatigat, etc.; a metaphor taken from the use of the bit in 
managing a horse. Cf. vv. 100, 101. The object of fingit is the Sibyl 
herself, not os. Cf. G. II. 407. Premendo; by restraint. — 81, 82. 
Aeneas is in the temple, the Sibyl in the adytum, the cavern beyond. 
See on v. 43. — 83 - 87. Sed — manent is made a parenthesis by 
many critics, but, since O — periclis is in fact an announcement, the 
pointing here adopted seems better. Terrae ; the limiting rather 
than the locative genitive. Sed — volent = but they shall not wish 
that they had come ; i. e. shall wish they had not come. Thybrim. 
Cf. II. 782. — 88 - 92. Simois . . . Xanthus. See on I. 100, 473. 
Defuerint. Gr. 473. 1. A. & S. 259, R. 1 (5). Achilles ; i. e. 
Turnus. Cf. E. IV. 36. Partus. Cf. II. 784. Latio = in Latium. 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 635 

Natus — dea = and he too born of a goddess (i. e. Venilia). Addita 
merely strengthens nee usquam aberit. Quum makes the transition 
from the declarative to the exclamatory form of sentence. — 93. La- 
vinia was to be the prize of the second war as Helen had been of the 
first. Hospita; i. e. non Trojana. — 95. Contra ; sc. mala. Au- 
dentior = all the bolder (for opposition). — 96. Quam = as far as. 
— 97. Urbe ; i. e. Pallanteum, the city of Evander, with whom Aeneas 
afterwards makes an alliance (Book VIII). — 99 - 101. Remugit is 
explained by antro ; the cave echoing the voice of the Sibyl. Ob- 
scuris — involvens = wrapping truth in mystery. Ea has the force 
of adeo. The metaphor is the same as in v. 77 foil. Furenti. Gr. 384. 
II. A.&S.223. Subpectore. See on I. 36. Vertit = plies. — 104. 
Mi = mihi. — 105. Peregi Cf. exigit, IV. 476. — 107. Dicitur = 
is said (to be). Acheronte refuso = of (from) overflowing Acheron : 
the abl. being either absolute or descriptive. See on G. II. 492. — 
109. Contingat. Gr. 488. I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. So doceas and 
pandas. — 110, 111. Cf. II. 721 foil. Humeris. Gr. 414. 4. A. 
& S. 247. 3. — 112-114. Maria — ferebat ; i. e. he sailed on every 
sea with me, and bore all the dangers of wind and wave. Invalidus ; 
sc. etsi. Sortem = the (usual) lot. — 116 - 118. Gnati patrisque. 
Gr. 406. I. A. & S. 215. Potes omnia = you are all-powerful. 
Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). Hecate. See on IV. 511. Avernis. 
Cf. vv. 237 foil, and Ov. M. V. 540. — 119 - 123. Si potuit, etc. 
The conclusion is implied, not expressed : If others have obtained 
this favor, why should not I, whose claims are as great ? Orpheus. 
See Ov. M. X. Introd. and cf. M. XI. 2. Cithara. Gr. 419. IV. 
A. & S. 244. Pollux. See on Hor. C. I. 3. 2. Castor was mortal, 
Pollux immortal. The latter was allowed to share his immortality 
with his brother, the two dying on alternate days, or, according to 
another myth, for alternate half-years. Thesea . . . Alciden. Cf. 
vv - 39 2 > 393 an d see on Hor. C. IV. 7. 27. Memorem. Gr. 486. II. 
A. & S. 260, R. 5. H/li = mi/u: possessive dat. Cf. I. 380. — 124. 
C£ IV. 219. — 126. Averno ; dative for in Avernum : to the lower 
world. —127. Atri See on Ov. M. V. 404 and Hor. C. I. 24. 18. — 
129-132. Aequus here = kind, partial. Ardens, etc. Cf. v. 394. 
Tenent — atro ; i. e. between the place where they are now stand- 
ing and the shades a pathless forest and the river Cocytus intervene. 
Sinu = winding. — 133. Cf. II. 10, 349. — 134. Innare. Gr. 563. 6. 
A. & S. 275. III. N. 1. Lacus ; because a sluggish stream. Cf. v. 
323. — 136. Arbore ; poetic abl. of place. — 137. Poliis . . . virni- 
ne. Gr. 429. A. & S. 250. 1. — 138. Proserpina is Juno infen/u, 
as Pluto is Juppiter Stygins, IV. 638. Dictus sacer — dedkatus. — 
139. Convallibus; instr. abl. —140, 141. Sed: but, hard as it is 
to find the bough, it is the only passport. Qui The construction 



6$6 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

is : non ante datur quam (ei) qui, etc. i. e. non datur nisi ei qui. — 

144. Simili is virtually = eodem. Metallo; with frondescit. — 

145. Ergo ; since it is so important. Rite = duly ; with repertum, 
or, as most critics prefer, with carpe. — 149. Jacet = lies (un- 
buried). See on II. 557. Tibi; dativus incommodi. —150. Fu- 
nere. Cf. II. 539. — 151. Consulta = the decrees (of the gods, or 
of destiny). Pendes = delay, linger. — 152. Sedibus ; i. e. the 
tomb. Sepulcro. Cf. III. 67. —153. Due; sc. ad aras. Nigras. 
Cf. v. 243. Prima = preliminary. — 156. Lumina. Gr. 380. 
A. & S. 234. II. — 158. Cui. See on II. 704. — 159. Vestigia 
figit ; i. e. walks slowly, as one lost in thought. — 164, 165. Aeoii- 
den ; probably son of Aeolus, a noble Trojan, mentioned XII. 542. 
Ciere. See on E. V. 1. — 167. Lituo. See on Hor. C. I. 1. 23. 
Join with insignis.— 168. Ilium; Hector. — 170. Inferiora ; 
a Grecism for inferiorem. — 171. Personat. See on I. 741 and cf. 
VI. 417. Concha; Triton's own instrument. Cf. Ov. M. I. 333. — 
173, 174. Exceptum . . . immerserat — exceperat et immerserat. 
Cf. III. 332. — 176 - 178. Cf. I. 220. Jussa ; ace. with festinant. 
Cf. IV. 575. Aram sepulcri ; i. e. a pyre piled up like an altar. 
Coelo educere. Cf. II. 186. — 179-182. Itur. Cf. IV. 151. 
Cuneis, etc. Cf. G. I. 144. Montibus ; sc. de. Advolvunt; 
sc. litori, or pyrae. — 183, 184. Primus; like praeciptie, v. 176. 
Aeneas takes up an axe like the rest. — 187-189. Arbore = on 
the tree. Ostendat. Gr. 488. 1. A. & S. 263. 1. The sense is : 
Would that the first part of the Sibyl's words may prove as true as 
the second has done. — 190. Forte denotes the coincidence. — 193. 
Maternas. Cf. V. 72 and G. I. 28. — 194. Este — est ; i. e. este 
duces viae, si qua est. Cursum = (your) flight. — 195. Pinguem = 
rich (as producing aught so rich). — 196. Rebus ; dative. " Forsake 
not our cause at this crisis." — 197. Pressit ; i. e. repressit. — 198. 
Ferant. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Cf. II. 171. —199, 200. They 
keep flying on and alighting to feed alternately. Prodire ; historical 
infin. Possent. Gr. 500. A. & S. 264. 5. Servare. Cf. v. 338. 
— 201. Graveolentis. Gr. 669. II. A. & S. 306 (1) and (2). — 
203. Sedibus optatis = having chosen their place to settle ; or 
optatis may refer to Aeneas's wish to find the tree. Super = on 
the top of. — 204. Aura = splendor. — 206. Non sua ; as in G. 
II. 82. Seminat = produces. — 211. Cunctantem ; with refer- 
ence to avidus, not = resisting. See vv. 147 foil. — 212. Nee — 
interea ; a common form of transition in Virgil. — 213. Cineri ; 
proleptic. Ingrato =gratiam non sentienti: unconscious. — 214- 
217. Join taedis with pinguem, robore with ingentem (Henry 
and Con.). Cf. IV. 505. Atris ; i. e. from funereal trees. Ante 

. . . constituunt = place in front ; i. e. as a facing to the pile. This 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 637 

seems, on the whole, the simplest and most satisfactory of the various 
interpretations. Decorantque — armis ; i. e. they throw upon the 
pile the arms of Misenus, or those of enemies despoiled by him. — 
218, 219. Undantia ; with flammis, referring to the boiling. Bz- 
pediunt. See on I. 178. — 220. Fit gemitus. Cf. I. 725 ; II. 209. 
Toro =feretro, the bier being burnt on the pile. Defleta; like 
fleti, v. 481, the de, however, adding intensity. — 221. Nota; i.e. 
which he had worn when alive. Some understand it to refer to the 
custom of wrapping the dead in purple robes at great Roman funerals. 

— 222. Feretro ; abl. probably, though it may be the dative. The 
ace. is more common with this sense of subire. — 223 - 225. Minis- 
terium ; in apposition with the action of the preceding verb. A. & S. 
204, R. 9. Subjectam . . . tenuere = subjecere et tenuere. Cf. 
II. 37. Parentum = majorum. Dapes ; the victims. Olivo ; 
for oleo, as in E. V. 68. Gr. 428. A. & S. 211, R. 6. — 228. Lecta ; 
collected from the pile. Cado ; an urn. — 229 - 231. The lustra- 
tion is performed to purify the crews from the pollution caused by the 
dead body, v. 150. Socios unda; a variety for circumtulit socios 
puram undam. Rore et ramo : hendiadys. Novissima verba. 
Cf. IV. 650. — 233. Arma must refer to remumque tubamque, 
if we understand that his arms were burnt on the pile, v. 2 1 7. Or we 
may adopt the explanation of Serv. that the arms were sculptured on 
the tomb. Viro explains sua, which would naturally refer to Aeneas. 

— 235. It is still known as Punta di Miseno. — 237. This cave is not 
the one mentioned in vv. 1 1, 42. — 238. Tuta = sheltered : part, as in I. 
571. — 242. The genuineness of this verse is doubtful. Aornon ; i. e. 
birdless. — 243. See on v. 153, and cf. V. 97.-244. Cf. V. 237 and IV. 
61. — 247. Cf. IV. 5 10, 5 1 1. — 249. The blood is caught in bowls that it 
may afterwards be poured out, apparently on the ground. Cf. III. 67 ; 
V. 78. Ipse : Aeneas also performs a sacrifice, in the Homeric fashion. 

— 250. The mother of the Furies was Nox, and her great sister was 
Terra. See on Ov. M. X. 46. —252. Stygio regi= Pluto. Cf. 
IV. 638. Sacrifices to the infernal gods were performed by night. 
Cf. Hor. C. S. Introd. — 253. Solida = integra. Inchoat. Cf. 
instaurat, IV. 73. — 254. Super . . . fundens : tmesis. For super 
see on picer, E. IX. 66. — 256. Cf. IV. 490. Juga silvarum ; i. e. 
the ridges covered with woods. Cf. Hor. S. II. 6. 91. — 257. Canes ; 
infernal hounds accompanying Hecate. — 258. Profani ; the com- 
panions of Aeneas who were not to go with him. — 260. Why Aeneas 
is told to draw his sword is not clear. Cf. vv. 290 foil. It might 
serve, from association, "to keep his courage up." — 261. Animis. 
Gr, 419. V. A. & S. 243.-264. Cf. V. 235. Umbrae are the 
ghosts, the silentes of v. 432. — 265. Cf. IV. 510. Phlegethon. 
Cf. vv. 550 foil. Loca ; vocative, like Umbrae, Chaos, and Phlegethon. 



638 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

— 266. Sit — fas = let it be right for me. The second sit = liceat, 
or fas may be understood. — 268. Obscuri. Cf. II. 135. — 269. 
Inania regna. Cf. /eves poptdos, Ov. M. X. 14. — 270 - 272. Cf. 
II. 255, 340. Incertam lunam ; " the struggling moonbeam's 
misty light." Maligna. See on G. II. 1 79. Juppiter ; as the god 
of the sky. See on E. VII. 60. —273. Cf. II. 469. — 274. Ultrices 
Curae ; the stings of conscience (Serv.). — 276. Malesuada = 
which tempts to crime. Turpis = squalid. — 278 - 281. Mala — 
gaudia = malae mentis gatidia, i. e. all evil pleasures. The Furies 
have their home here, though they are at work elsewhere, v. 563. 
Ferreique. Gr. 669. II. A. & S. 306. 1. Crinem. Gr. 380. 
A. & S. 234. II.— 282-284. In medio; sc. vestibulo. Vulgo ; 
with tenere rather than ferunt. Vana ; fallacious as well as in- 
substantial. Haerent; sc. somnia. — 285-289. Monstra fera- 
rum = monstruosae ferae. Scyllae ; rhetorical plural, like Milton's 
"Hydras and Chimaeras dire." Cf. III. 420 foil. Briareus. See 
on Gyas, Hor. C. III. 4. 69. Belua Lernae ; the Lernaean Hydra, 
slain by Hercules. Gorgones. See on Ov. M. IV. 779. Harpyiae. 
See III. 211 foil. Forma — umbrae: i. e. the triple-bodied giant 
Geryon. Cf. Hor. C. II. 14. 8. — 293, 294. Admoneat . . . irruat. 
See on I. 58, 59. Diverberet. Cf. V. 503. — 295 - 297. Virgil's 
conception of the four infernal rivers is very confused. Aeneas cross- 
es but one, which, though called the Styx, v. 385, would seem to be 
the same as the Acheron or Cocytus here. Eructat = disgorges. 

— 299, 300. Terribili squalore ; not with horrendus, but as a 
second epithet. Stant — flamma ; i. e. his eyes are fixed orbs of 
fire. Cf. Hor. C. I. 9. 1. — 302 - 304. Ipse ; old as he was. Velis ; 
either dat. (tends the sails) or abl. (manages the boat by means of 
the sails). Ferruginea ; the same as caerulea?n, v. 410. Sed — 
senectus = but a god has a fresh and vigorous (lit. " green ") old 
age. — 305. Hue ... ad ripas. See on E. I. 54. — 310. Lapsa ; 
nearly = decussa (Dod.). Ad terram ; i. e. to the shore of the 
warmer clime which they have sought beyond the sea. — 311. An- 
nus. See on Hor. Ep. II. 29. — 313. Primi — cursum = ut primi 
transirent, to cross first. — 314. Amore ; as in I. 171. — 316. Sub- 
motos arcet. See on submersas obrue, I. 69. — 318. Quid vult 
= what means. — 320. Cf. III. 668. — 322. Deum. See on E. IV. 
49. — 323. See on v. 296. For vides cf. I. 338. — 324. Cf. Ov. 
M. II. 45. Numen. See on undas, Ov. M. II. 101. — 327, 328. 
Datur; sc. Charonti. Transportare ; sc. mortuos. Gr. 374. 6. 
A. & S. 233 (1). Sedibus. See on v. 152. — 330. Cf. v. 316. 
Stagna; as in v. 323. — 331. Cf. v. 197 and V. 244. — 334. Leu- 
caspim ; not mentioned elsewhere by Virg. Oronten. See I. 1 13. 

— 335. Simul ; with obruit. It is quite as well to join it, as Con. 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 639 

does, with vectos, and to refer simul to Aeneas : who had been with 
him through all his wanderings. — 338. Libyco ; i. e. from Libya, 
though they had meanwhile visited Sicily. — 339. See. V. 835 foil. 
Undis ; the abl. including the notion of the ace : effusus in undas in 
medio cursu. So medioque sub aeqtwre, v. 342. — 343 - 345. Mihi. 
Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). This prediction is not elsewhere 
mentioned by Virg. Ponto = on the sea. — 347. Cortina. See on 
III. 92. — 348. Deus = any god. See v. 341. He knew nothing of 
what Somnus had done. — 350. Cui ; with either datus or haere- 
bam, or both. With regebam supply quo from cui. — 351. Prae- 
cipitans = in my fall : intrans. Maria. See on numen, v. 324. 

— 354. Undis; abl. abs. — 356. Aqua; with vexit, like pelagoque 
vehatttr, X. 165, fertur aqua, VIII. 549. Many join it with violentus. 

— 357. Ab unda; with prospesri, as in v. 385. — 358 - 361. Cf. 
I. 538 ; IV. 613. Tenebam . . . invasisset. Gr. 512. 2. 2). A. & S. 
259, R. 4 (1) {a). Uncis manibus; as in G. II. 365. — 362. Cf. I. 
556. — 363. Cf. III. 600. Quod. See on II. 141. — 364. Cf. IV. 
274. — 366. Namque potes ; i. e. vou can easily find my bod}-. — 
367. Cf. v. 194.— 368. Cf. II. 777"; V. 56.-369. Cf.V 134.— 
370. Dextram; the hand of promise, not of help. Cf. III. 610. 

— 373. Cf. G. I. 37. — 376. Cf. II. 689 ; IV. 292. — 377. Cf. tolle 
memor, Hor. A. P. 367. —380. Cf. V. 605 ; IV. 623. — 381. Cf. v. 
235. It is still called Punta di Palinuro. — 382. Parumper == for 
a while. — 383. Cognomine ; adj. with terra. Some read terrae. — 
384. Ergo indicates a resumption of the mam subject. Peragunt ; 
here nearly = pergunt. — 387. Ultro; as in II. 145. — 389. Jam 
istino ; with fare : speak from the place where you are, without com- 
ing nearer. — 392 - 394. Nee vero = nor indeed. Alciden . . . 
Thesea. See on vv. 122, 123. Pirithoum; king of the Lapithae 
(see on v. 601). He and Theseus became close friends and aided 
each other in every project. Each was ambitious in love, and re- 
solved to wed a daughter of Zeus. Theseus fixed upon Helen, and 
the two friends succeeded in carrying her off. Pirithous determined 
to take Persephone (Proserpina), the queen of Hades (Pluto), and 
Theseus, who would not abandon his friend, went with him to the 
lower world ; but Pluto, knowing their design, seized them and fast- 
ened them to a rock. Heracles (Hercules) afterwards freed Theseus, 
but did not rescue Pirithous. See also on Hor. C. IV. 7. 27, and cf. 
C. III. 4. 80. Dis : Theseus from Neptune, Pirithous from Jove. 
Cf. v. 131. — 395, 396. Cf. Ov. M. X. 65 and note. See also below, 
v. 417. — 397. Dominam = our queen (or, my mistress). Ditis; 
with thalamo. — 398. Amphrysia ; from her association with 
Apollo, who is called Amphrysius from the river Amphrysus in 
Thessaly, on whose banks he fed the herds of Admetus. — 400 - 



640 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

402. Antro = in his den. Terreat. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 
4. Patrui. Cf. Ov. M. V. 379.— 403. Cf. I. 10, 545. —405. Cf. 
IV. 272. — 407. Agnoscas ; probably in an imperative sense. Tu- 
mida . . . residunt ; a metaphor from the sea. Cf. G. II. 479, 480. 

— 408. Nee — his ; sc. acta inter eos (Wr.) : nor did more than this 
pass between them. — 409. Fatalis ; explained by v. 147. —411. 
Alias ; other than Aeneas : a common idiom with alius and the 
Greek ciXkos. Juga = transtra. — 412. Laxatque = and clears. 
Alveo. See onferreigtie, v. 280. — 414. Cf. I. 122. Sutilis ; i. e. 
made of skins, or of rushes or flags, as in Egypt. — 417. See on 
Hor. C. II. 13. 34. — 418. Immanis ; with recubans. Cf. v. 423 and 
III. 631. —423. Cf. I. 193,-424. Sepulto. Cf. II. 265. —426. 
Continuo ; immediately on leaving the bank. — 428. Exsortes = 
expertes. — 430. Mortis; with damnati. Gr. 410. 5. 1). A. & S. 
217, R. 3 {a). — 431. Hae . . . sedes; of the lower world generally. 

— 432, 433. Minos. See on Hor. C. II. 13. 22. Urnam. Cf. 
Hor. C. III. 1. 16. Concilium = the assemblage. Vitas — dis- 
cit = learns what their lives have been and rehears the charges 
against them. — 435. Insontes ; having done nothing worthy of 
death. Manu ; nearly = ipsi. — 436. Aethere in alto = in vita. 

— 440. Fusi = spreading. — 443. Myrtea. See on E. VII. 62. — 
444. Curae; as in IV. 1, etc. — 445. Phaedram; the daughter of 
Minos and wife of Theseus. She fell in love with her step-son Hip- 
polytus, by whom she was repulsed. She afterwards killed herself. 
Procrim ; the wife of Cephalus, by whom she was accidentally 
killed. The legends concerning her are various and conflicting. 
Eriphylen. See on Hor. C. III. 16. 11. — 447. Evadnen ; the 
wife of Capaneus, who was struck with lightning by Jupiter, because 
he had defied the god. While his body was burning, Evadne leaped 
into the flames and destroyed herself. Fasiphaen. See on v. 25. 
Laodamia; who voluntarily died with her husband Protesilaus. — 
448. Caeneus ; one of the Lapithae, originally a maiden, Caenis, 
who was changed by Neptune into a man, but recovered the female 
form in the lower world. — 454. Per nubila ; with videt and vidisse. 

— 456. Nuntius ; i. e. the blaze of the funeral pile, V. 3 foil. Ergo ; 
as in Hor. C. I. 24. 5. — 457. Exstinctam; sc. te esse. Gr. 551. 3. 
A. & S. 270, R. 1 (c). — 458. Funeris seems to be emphatic : was 
it death that I brought upon you ? Per, etc. Cf. III. 599. — 459. 
Cf. II. 142. — 462. Senta = horrida or inculta. — 465. She is al- 
ready moving away. Adspectu ; dat. See on curru, E. V. 29. — 
467, 468. Torva tuentem . . . animum is a bold expression ; 
though animus is sometimes an appositive of a person, as in V. 751. 

— 469. Cf. I. 482.— 470. Vultum. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 
471. Quam, etc. = than if she had the fixedness of stubborn flint 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 64 1 

or a crag of Marpessa (a mountain of Paros). — 473. Nemus ; the 
silva of v. 443. IUi. See on mihi, v. 343. — 474. " He answers all 
her cares and equals all her love." Dryden. Curls; dative. Gossrau 
makes it abl. — 475. Cf. V. 700, 869. —477. Datum; i. e.fato con- 
cessum (Wr.). Con. makes it = dictum a Sibylla. Molitur. See 
on G. I. 329. — 478. Secreta; set apart for them. —479, 480. 
He sees the heroes of the Theban war, the great event of the heroic 
ages before the siege of Troy. — 481 - 485. Ad superos == apud 
super os, v. 568. Con. thinks it means that the wail was raised to the 
skies (cf. v. 561). Caduci. See on Hor. C. II. 13. 11. Longo 
ordine, as in II. 766, is nearly = ingenti multitudine. The heroes 
named are mentioned by Homer as among the most distinguished of 
the Trojans. Cereri sacrum ; consecrated to the service of Ceres, 
perhaps her priest. Idaeus ; in Horn, the charioteer of Priam. Here 
he is armor-bearer also. Cf. II. 476. — 488. Conferre gradum = 
to walk by his side. — 491-493. Trepidare; historical infin., so 
called. So vertere, tollere. Vocem ; the war-cry, not a cry of terror. 

— 495-497. Cf. II. 310. Ora, etc. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 
498. Adeo. See on E. I V. 1 1. — 499. Cf. IV. 304 — 500. Genus. 
Cf V. 45. — 502, 503. Cui — licuit = who has had his will of you 
so far? Suprema nocte; sc. Trojae. So in v. 513. — 505. Cf. 
III. 108, 304. — 506. C£ III. 68. — 507. Locum ; i. e. the memory 
of the place. Cf. vv. 235, 381. Te ; thy body. Cf. v. 362. — 508. 
Patria terra; with ponere, not with decedens. — 509. Tibi. Gr. 
388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. — 511. Lacaenae = the Spartan woman ; 
contemptuously for Helen. See on I. 650, and cf. II. 601. — 512. 
Mersere. Cf. vv. 429, 615. — 515, 516. See on II. 237, 238. — 
516. Peditem. See on I. 564. — 517. Evantes orgia = cele- 
brating the rites of Bacchus by shouting Evan ; i. e. the name of 
Bacchus. A Grecism. — 519. Summa — vocabat. From this 
we learn that Helen from the top of the citadel gave the signal to 
Agamemnon for the fleet to start. Cf. II. 254 foil. — 523. Egregia; 
ironical. — 525. Limina = the chamber ; unless we are to suppose 
a hysteron-proteron. — 526. Amanti ; contemptuously of Menela- 
us, as if he were a new lover whose heart Helen was anxious to 
win. — 529. Hortator scelerum. Cf. II. 164. Aeolides; refer- 
ring to the post- Homeric slander which made Ulysses the son of 
Sisyphus, who was son of Aeolus. See on II. 7. — 530. Instaurate 
= repay. — 533. Quae . . . fortuna; i. e. quae alia fortuna. Fati- 
gat =5 harasses. — 534. Loca turbida = a region of chaotic gloom. 

— 535. Hac vice sermonum = during this interchange of dis- 
course. Gr. 426. 1. A. & S. 253, N. 1. Quadrigis. Gr. 414. 4. 
A. & S. 247. 3. — 536. Cursu = in her course. Azem = heaven. 

— 537. Traherent. Gr. 486. 4. A. & S. 261, R. 4 and 5. — 538. 

41 



642 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

Comes = as a companion. — 541. Dextera quae = which on the 
right. The antecedent of quae is hac. — 542. Iter Elysium. See 
on III. 507. Nobis implies that they were not to visit Tartarus. 
Laeva — mittit ; instead of saying it conducts them to Tartarus 
where they are punished. — 545. Explebo numerum = I will 
fill up the number (of the shades) ; i. e. by rejoining them. — 546. 
Utere = habe. — 547. In verbo = even while he was speaking. — 
548. Respicit ; often used of looking in another direction or at 
another object. Cf. II. 615; III. 593. — 549. Moenia = fortifica- 
tion, stronghold. — 550. Torrentibus suggests the notion of a tor- 
rent as well as that of scorching flame. — 551. Phlegethon acts as 
a moat, apparently outside the walls. — 552. Adversa ; i. e. facing the 
beholder. — 554. Stat ; combining the notions of height and fixity. 
Ad auras ; as if surgit or se tollit had preceded. So in v. 561. — 555. 
Tisiphone. See on G. I. 278. — 557. Exaudiri ; historical infin. — 
558. Ferri is explained by catenae. Tractae. Gr. 580. A. & S. 274, 
R. 5 {a). — 561. Urguentur ; sc. scelerum fades. — 563. Casto. See 
on III. 409. Insistere ; commonly with dat. — 564. Hecate. See 
on v. 118. — »■ 566. Gnosius. See on G. I. 122. Rhadamanthus. 
See on Hor. C. II. 13. 22. — 567. Castigatque, etc. ; hysteron- 
proteron. Dolos = crimes ; conceived of as skulking from justice 
and pleading not guilty. — 568, 569. Quae . . . commissa pia- 
cula = what expiations of wicked deeds committed. Furto = in con- 
cealment ; called furtum as a fraud on justice. Distulit in seram 
. . . mortem = has put off to (this) late death ; meaning, not a death- 
bed confession, but a suppression of guilt till it is revealed in the 
lower world. — 570. Accincta = armed. — 571. Quatit = lashes. 
— 572. Sororum. See on G. I. 278. — 574. Custodia = custos ; 
i. e. Tisiphone. — 577. Saevior; i.e. than Tisiphone. — 578, 579. Cf. 
IV. 445 ; G. II. 292. — 580. Genus Terrae. See on G. I. 279. 
Hor. C. III. 4. 73 foil. — 582. Aloidas. See on Hor. C. III. 4. 49 
foil. — 585. Salmonea ; the son of Aeolus and brother of Sisy- 
phus. For his arrogance in pretending to be equal to Jupiter and in 
imitating his thunder and lightning, that god hurled him to Tartarus 
by a thunderbolt. — 588. Mediae — urbem = through (his) city 
(i. e. Salmone) in the middle of Elis. — 590. Nimbos = thunder. — 
591. Simularet. Gr. 591. A. & S. 264. 8 (1). — 593. Ille is 
semipleonastic, as in I. 3 ; V. 458. — 594. Turbine. See on I. 45. — 
595. Tityon. See on Ov. M. X. 43. — 598. Poenis. Gr. 419. III. 
A. & S. 250. 2(1). — 599. Epulis. Gr. 384. A. & S. 223. — 600. 
Fibris, See on G. I. 484. — 601. Ixiona. See on Ov. M. X. 42. 
Pirithoum. See on v. 393. Lapithas (a rude tribe of mountain- 
eers in Thessaly) seems to stand for the whole nation, Ixion and Piri- 
thous being mentioned only as specimens. — 602. Jam jam. See 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 643 

on II. 701 ; IV. 371. Cadentique. The hypermeter has a rhetori- 
cal effect, the overlapping syllable expressing the just-falling stone. — 
603. Genialibus = banqueting. — 604. Toris. Gr. 384. 1. A. & S. 
223. — 605. Furiarum maxima; Alecto or Megaera, Tisiphone 
being otherwise employed. See v. 555. — 607. Exsurgitque ; as 
if they were persisting in their attempt to eat, in spite of her prohibi- 
tion.— 608. Quibus invisi. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. The ex- 
pression is general, though Virg. may have thought of special in- 
stances like Atreus and Thyestes, Eteocles and Polynices. — 609. 
Innexa; metaphorical, as in IV. 51, but here of the web of trickery 
and wrong in which the patron is supposed to entangle his client. The 
laws of the Twelve Tables made the crime here mentioned capital. — 
610. Divitiis — repertis = brooded alone over treasures found ; a 
type of all who are greedy of gain. — 611. Posuere — dedere. — 
613. Impia. See on G. I. 511. Fallere dextras ; i. e. to violate 
the pledge of fidelity given to their masters. — 615. Quam poenam ; 
sc. exspectant ; quam being relative, not interrogative, like quae in 
next clause. Poenam must be supplied after doceri ; likewise for mam 
and fortunam in the next clause. Forma . . . fortunave = form or 
lot (of penal suffering). The form itself is said mergere, as it receives 
them when they are engulfed in the abyss. — 616. Que. See on 
G. II. 87. — 618. Theseus. See on vv. 122, 393. Phlegyas, the 
father of Ixion and a king of the Lapithae, set fire to the temple of 
Apollo, who killed him with his arrows. Non temnere divos is 
explanatory of discite justitiam, justitia being the rendering of their 
dues to all, gods as well as men. — 621. Auro. See on I. 484. — 622. 
Fixit . . . refixit. See on Ov. M. I. 92. — 623. Invasit ; with thala- 
mum = invaded, with hymenaeos = sought. — 625. Sint. See 
on G. II. 43. — 629. Susceptum — munus = finish the task you 
have undertaken ; i. e. carrying the golden bough to Proserpina. — 630, 
Cyclopum — caminis = reared by the forges of the Cyclops ; i. e. 
by Vulcan and his Cyclops. See on G. I. 471. Cf. Hor. C. I. 4 78 

— 631. Adverso — portas ; i. e. in the arched gateway fronting us 

— 632. Haec . . . dona ; for the singular. Praecepta ; sc. deae. 
Cf. v. 142. — 633. Opaca viarum. See on I. 422. —634. Corrip 
iunt medium. Cf. V. 316. — 635. Corpus = aqua; as was cus 
tomary on entering a temple. Recenti aqua ; emphatic, like flu 
mine vivo, II. 719. — 637. Mucere = offering. Divae ; Proserpina 

— 638. Locos. See on 1, 365. — 638. Vireta = green retreats. — 
639. Fortunatorum ; i. e in which the happy dwell. — 640. Largior 

— purpureo = here the f,ther clothes the fields more expansively 
(i. e. than in the gloomy regiono of Tartarus) and with a dazzling 
light. Largior is a fitod&CAte, avid no is coupled with lumine dwfiu' 
reo, both qualifying /jiHt C( tt_,zremus galcaque ima, V. 498- — 



644 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

641. Solem — norunt ; i. e. they have a sun and stars of their own, 
distinct from those in the upper world. — 645. Threicius . . . sacer- 
dos. See on Ov. M. X. Introd. Cf. Ov. M. XL 2 ; Hor. C. I. 24. 
13 ; III. 1. 3. The long robe was characteristic of musicians. — 646. 
Obloquitur numeris = sings responsive to the numbers ; i. e. to 
the beat of the dancers. Septem — vocum ; the seven notes of 
the seven strings of the lyre, but produced of course by the voice. — 
647. Pectine =plectro. — 649. Annis. Gr. 426. A. & S. 253. 

— 650. See on I. 284 ; III. 107, 108, 168. — 651. Virum ; with 
both arma and curr?is. Inaiies = ghostly, shadowy. — 653. Gratia 
= love, fondness. Currum ; for currimm. — 654. Nitentes. See 
on III. 20. — 657. Vescentes = feasting. Choro = in a band. — 
658. Superne =in the upper world. — 659. Plurimus . . . vol- 
vitur = rolls full and strong ; i. e. through the upper world. The 
legend was doubtless suggested by the fact that the Po, with which 
the Romans identified the Eridanus, not far from its source, flows 
underground for two miles. Eridani. See on G. I. 482. — 660. 
Manus ; sc. sunt qui. — 662. Vates = poets. — 663. Vitam ; not 
their life, but life generally. Per artes = artibus. — 664. Merendo 
= by their services. — 665. Vitta is the mark of consecration, being 
worn by the gods and by persons and things dedicated to them. — 
667. Musaeus is the mythical father of poets, as Orpheus of singers. 

— 668. Humeris. Gr. 418. A. & S. 256, R. 16. — 670. Illius. 
Gr. 41 1. 3. A. & S. 247, R. 2 (a). — 674. Rivis. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 
247. 1. — 675. Si — voluntas = if such is your wish; i. e. to see 
Anchises. — 676. Jam = at once. — 678. Dehinc. See on I. 131. 
Linquunt ; i. e. Aeneas and the Sibyl. — 679. Penitus — virenti 
= deep in a verdant dale. — 681. Studio recolens = earnestly 
contemplating. Suorum = of his progeny ; explained by caros ne- 
potes. — 682. Forte recensebat ; i. e. Anchises happened to be 
reviewing that part of the whole multitude when Aeneas appeared. — 
683. Manus = martial exploits. — 687. Parenti. Gr. 388. 4. A. 
& S. 225. II. — 690. Futurum; with ducebam as well as rebar. — 
691. Tempora dinumerans ; i. e. counting the days till Aeneas 
might be expected to come. Fefellit ; of disappointment and wasted 
labor. — 694. Quid. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 232 (3). — 696. Limina. 
Gr. 379. 4. A. & S. 237, R. 5 {c). Tendere. Gr. 553. V. A. & S. 
273, N. 4 {b). — 699. Memorans. See on II. 650. — 700. Collo. 
Gr. 384. 1. A. & S. 224, R. 1 {b). — 703. Reducta = retired. See 
on I. 161. — 704. Virgulta — silvis = the shrubbery rustling with 
the woods. Cf. III. 442 ; XII. 522, virgulta sonantia lauro. — 705. 
Lethaeum . . . amnem ; Lethe, a river of the lower"world, the drink- 
ing of whose waters caused forgetfulness of the past. Praenatat. 
Cf. praefluit, Hor. C. IV. 14. 26. — 707. Ac velut = even as. Cf. 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 645 

IV. 402. — 708. Circum . . . funduntur = swarm around. — 709. 
Strepit — campus ; the apodosis of the sentence, and referring to 
the shades. — 710. Subito ; adj. with visu, and explaining horrescit. 

— 711. Ba flumina porro = that river in the distance. — 715. 
Securos latices = care- dispelling draughts. — 717. Jampridem 
. . . cupio belong to the preceding line as well as to enumerare. 
Gr. 467. 2. A. & S. 145. I. 2. Meorum == of my descendants. — 
719. Ad coelum = to the upper light. — 720. Sublimes = on 
high ; with ire. Cf. I. 415. — 721. Dira cupido. See on G. I. 37. 

— 723. Suscipit = resumes, replies. — 724-751. Anchises ex- 
plains that everything in nature is pervaded by one great spirit, that 
this in men is clogged by the body, and consequently that after death 
there has to be a longer or shorter purification, after which the souls 
are sent back into the world to animate other bodies. — 725. Titani- 
aque astra; i. e. the sun: poetical plu. for sing. Cf. IV. 119. — 
727. Corpore. Cf. G. II. 327.-728. Inde, etc.; i. e. this union 
of mind and matter is the cause of individual life in animals, which 
consist of soul and body. — 730. Igneus; the pure ether of the di- 
vine soul being regarded as flame. Cf. v. 746. — 731, 732. Se- 
minibus = seeds (of life). Quantum = so far as. Tardant . . . 
hebetant. Cf. V. 395, 396. Moribunda ; stronger than mortalia. 

— 733, 734. Hinc ; from this influence of the body. Neque — 
caeco = their gaze cannot pierce the sky, imprisoned as they are in 
darkness and a blind fleshly dungeon. — 737, 738. Penitusque ; 
where we should expect sed penitus. Multa ; i. e. multum vitii. 
Diu ; with concreta. Modis miris. Cf. I. 354 — 740 - 742. 
A threefold purification, by air, water, and fire, is described. Ina> 
nes ; with ventos. Infectum = with which they are infected. — 
743, 744. Quisque — Manes = each of us suffers his own Manes ; 
i. e. each spirit has its individual discipline. The rest of the passage, 
which is one of the hardest in Virgil, seems to mean that all the 
shades are sent into Elysium after their purgation, but that while the 
greater part only pass through on their way to Lethe, a few, of whom 
Anchises is one, are allowed to remain there and complete a still 
higher purification. But this interpretation, the best that can be given, 
is not entirely satisfactory, and it may be, as Con. thinks, that this is 
one of the passages which Virg. left unfinished. — 745 - 747. Longa 
dies. Cf. V. 783. Temporis orbe. Cf. v. 748. Concretam. 
Cf. v. 738. Sensum = soul. Aurai. See on III. 354. Ignem. 
Cf. v. 730. — 749. Cf. vv. 714, 715. — 750. Cf. v. 241. — 754. Pos- 
set. Gr. 486. III. A. & S. 264 5, R. 2. — 755. Legere = to scan. 

— 756. Deinde = hereafter. — 757. Itala de gente = of Italian 
birth ; i. e. the descendants of Lavinia. Cf. v. 762. — 758. Cf. v. 
680. — 759. Cf. III. 379. — 760. Pura hasta = a headless spear ; 



646 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

given to young men on their first military success. Gr. 419. II. A. & S. 
245. II. 1 . — 761, 762. Lucis loca ; a place in the upper world. 
Auras aetherias. Cf. I. 546. — 763. Silvius became the regular 
cognomen of the Alban kings. Postuma = latest. — 765. Cf. Livy 
1. 4 : casu quoda?n in si/vis natus. — 766. Unde = a qzio, as in V. 123, 
etc. Longa Alba. See on I. 271. — 767, 768. Proximus ; used 
loosely, as Procas was the twelfth (some say fourteenth) king of Alba. 
Capys was the sixth, eighth, or ninth ; Numitor succeeded Procas. — 
769 - 770. Aeneas Silvius was one of the earliest of the Alban kings. 
Serv. says that he was kept out of his kingdom fifty-three years by a 
usurping guardian. — 772. Atque iidem civicas gerunt coronas, nam 
dcducent cives in colonias ( Wr.). The civic wreath was originally given 
only to the soldier who saved the life of a comrade in battle. — 773 - 
775. The places named are old Latin towns. Fidenae is more com- 
mon than Fidena. Collatinas = of Collatia. Pometios ; for Pometia y 
or Sites sa Pometia. On Gabii and Fidenae cf. Hor. E. I. 11. 7, 8. — 
777. The meaning is, that Romulus shall appear on earth to join his 
grandfather, whom, according to the story, he restored to his rights. 
Mavortius. Cf. I. 276. — 778. Assaraci. See on I. 284. Ilia. 
See on I. 274. — 779. Viden'. Gr. 669. 1. 3 and IV. Stant. See on 
E. V. 7. — 780. Et — honore ; i. e. Romulus is already marked as a 
child of the upper air (supemm) by his father's token, the two-crested 
helmet (Con). Wr. makes superum gen. plu. with pater : the father 
of the gods already marks him with his own honor ; i. e. with divine 
beauty and majesty. — 782. Animos ; her greatness of soul. — 783. 
Cf. G. II. 535. — 784, 785. See on Ov. M. XL 16. Turrita ; refer- 
ring to the mural crown she wore. — 790. Magnum — axem ; i. e. 
destined to go to the upper world. — 792, 793. Aurea — saecula. 
Cf. Hor. C. IV. 2. 39 and note. — 794. Saturno. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 
225. II. Cf. E. IV. 6. Super = beyond. Garamantas. See on 
IV. 198. Indos. See on Hor. C. I. 12. 51. On the whole passage, 
see on Hor. C. IV. 14. 39 foil. — 795 - 797. Extra sidera, like 
extra — vias, refers to the zodiac. Tellus ; Ethiopia. Atlas, etc. 
Cf. IV. 481, 482. — 799. Maeotia tellus ; i. e. the Scythians about 
the Maeotis Palus, the sea of Azov. — 800. See on Ov. M. II. 254, 
and cf. septemflnus, M. I. 423, septemplice, M. V. 187, etc. Turbant ; 
intrans. — 801. Cf. vv. 123, 392 and Hor. C. I. 12. 25, etc. — 802, 
803. Fixerit. Gr. 515. I. A. & S. 263. 2 (1). Three of the labors 
of Hercules are mentioned : the killing of the Cerynitian stag, the 
Erymanthian boar, and the Lernean hydra. Cf. v. 287 and V. 448. — 
805. Liber. See on Ov. M. III. 636. Nysa, the legendary moun- 
tain on which Bacchus was brought up, was identified with various 
places in Europe, Asia, and Africa. — 809. Sacra ferens. See 
on G. II. 476. — 810, 811. Regis ; Numa Pompilius. Fundabit 



THE AENEID. BOOK VI. 647 

= constituet et firmabit. Curibus ; an ancient Sabine town. — 814. 
Tullus (sc. Hostilius) ; the third king of Rome. — 815, 816. Cf. 
Pomp. Sabinus : Ancus Martins vivente Tullo aegre ferebat, quum e 
stirpe regia se jactaret, praelatum sibi Tullum. Itaque statnerat fa- 
vore populari Tullum regem cum tola familia occidere. — 817, 818. 
Virg. has not chosen to call Tarquin superbus, but has transferred the 
epithet to Brutus, the majestic and inflexible founder of Roman lib- 
erty. Receptos ; i. e. transferred from the kings to the consuls. — 
820. Nova bella ; the conspiracy to restore the Tarquins. — 822, 
823. The meaning is, that he will risk being called cruel by posterity, 
so long as he forces them to acknowledge that he is great. — 824, 
825. Decios. See on G. II. 169. Drusos ; referring especially to 
Livius, the conqueror of Hasdrubal. See on Hor. C. IV. 4. 37. 
Torquatum ; T. Manlius Torquatus, who caused his own son to be 
beheaded (hence saevum securi) for fighting contrary to orders. Ca- 
millum. See on Hor. C. I. 12. 37 foil. He recovered the stand- 
ards (signa) taken by the Gauls at the battle of the Allia. — 826. 
Paribus . . . armis. Cf. G. I. 489. Fulgere ; an older form than 
fulgere. Cf. G. I. 456. — 830. Socer ; Caesar, whose daughter Julia 
Pompey married. Monoeci ; the port of Hercules Monoecus, the 
modern Monaco, where was a promontory and a temple, whence arx, 
as in III. 531. — 831. Adversis — Eois = arrayed against him 
with an Eastern army ; referring to the composition of Pompey's for- 
ces. — 832. Animis — bella; a variety for adsuescite animos bellis. 
— 833. Note the alliteration. — 837. Hie; L. Mummius. Trium- 
phata ; a poetical construction. Cf. Hor. C. III. 3. 43. Capitolia. 
See on Hor. C. IV. 3. 9. Corintho. Cf. Hor. E. II. 1. 193. Gr. 
431. A. & S. 257. — 838. Cf. I. 284, 285. IUe ; probably L. Aemil- 
ius Paullus. See on Hor. C. I. 12. 38. — 839. Aeaciden ; prob- 
ably Perseus, the Macedonian king, who is said to have been a de- 
scendant of Achilles. — 840. Cf. I. 41 ; II. 165, 403, etc. — 841. 
Cato ; the Censor. See on Hor. C. I. 12. 34. Cosse ; A. Corne- 
lius Cossus, who won the spolia opima, B. C. 428. — 842-846. 
Gracchi genus ; Tiberius, who was general in the second Punic 
war ; a second of the same name, who distinguished himself in the 
Spanish wars ; and the brothers Tiberius and Caius, the tribunes, 
who died the death of martyrs in the protection of the oppressed ple- 
beians. Scipiadas ; not the Scipios who fell in Spain, but the 
elder and younger Africanus. Potentem = opulentum, as in Hor. 
C. II. 18. 13. Fabricium. See on Hor. C. I. 12. 37 foil. Serrane; 
an agnomen of M. Atilius Regulus, said to have been given him be- 
cause he was sowing when the news was brought him that he was 
elected consul. See on Hor. C. III. 5. 13. Quo — rapitis ; alluding 
to the numbers and exploits of the Fabii, which tire him who tries to 



648 NOTES ON VIRGIL. 

tell them. Maximus ; Q. Fabius Cunctator, famous for his " mas- 
terly inactivity " while dictator in the second Punic war. Verse 846 is 
taken almost verbally from Ennius. — 847 - 850. Alii refers to the 
Greeks, the natural rivals of Rome. Mollius = more gracefully ; 
with some reference, perhaps, to giving the soft appearance of flesh. 
Orabunt — melius ; i. e. excel in oratory. Coeli meatus. Cf. G. 
II.477. Radio. See on E. III. 41. — 851-853. Romane; an 
address to the nation. Hae — artes = these shall be your arts ; i. e. 
shall stand to you in the place of sculpture, eloquence, and astronomy. 
Pacisque — morem ; i. e. compel them to cultivate the arts of peace 
(Wr., Henry, and Con.). Parcere, etc. Cf. Hor. C. S. 51. — 855 - 
859. Marcellus ; the elder. See on Hor. C. I. 12. 46. Tumultu ; 
a Gallic war. Poenos ; in the second Punic war. Tertia arma. 
The spolia opima were won only thrice in Roman history ; by Romu- 
lus, Cossus (see on v. 841), and Marcellus. Quirino. See on I. 292. 

— 860 - 863. Una ; with Marcellus. Prons — parum ; saddened 
with the presage of death. — 865. Quantum — ipso = how com- 
manding is his presence ! — 866. Cf. II. 360. — 868. G-nate. 
Wr. remarks that Virgil prefers the archaic spelling in solemn 
passages. — 870, 871. The construction seems to be : Romano, 
propago visa (est) nimium potens (futura fuisse). Propria. Cf. E. 
VII. 31. — 872, 874. Mavortis; with urbem, and perhaps with 
Campus also (Con.). See on I. 276. Aget = will send forth. Ti- 
berine ; sc. pater. Tumulum; the mausoleum of the Julian family 
in the Campus Martius, erected by Augustus five years before. 

— 876. Romula; the form of the noun used as an adjective. 
Cf. I. 686 ; III. 602 ; IV. 552 ; and Hor. C. S. 47. — 878. Cf. I. 292 
and Hor. C. S. 57. — 879 - 881. No one would have been his match 
in fight, had he been destined to live. — 883. See Life of Virgil. 
Tu — eris = you shall be a true Marcellus ; i. e. worthy of your an- 
cestral renown. — 884. Spargam. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. 
Cf. V. 79. — 886. Munere. Gr. 419. I. A. & S. 245. I. — 887. 
Aeris ; withcampos: the shadowy plains. — 890. Deinde. See 
on v. 756. — 891. Laurentes populos ; the Latini, from Lauren- 
turn, " the city of Latinus." — 892. Cf. III. 459. — 893 - 896. The 
gates of Sleep are from Horn. Od. XIX. 562 foil. Fertur = is said 
(to be). Veris Umbris ; real spirits which appear in sleep. Can- 
denti — elephanto = gleaming with the polish of dazzling ivory. 
Cf. V. 267. — 898. No good reason can be given why Aeneas should 
have been dismissed by one gate rather than the other. — 900. 
Caietae ; the modern Gaeta. Recto litore ; sailing straight along 
the shore (Wr., Forb., Con., et al.). Limite is found in three or four 
inferior MSS. — 901. Cf. III. 277, and see on vv. 4, 5 below. 



THE LIFE OF HORACE. 



Horace is his own biographer. All the material facts of his per- 
sonal history are to be gathered from allusions scattered throughout 
his poems. A memoir, attributed to Suetonius, of somewhat doubt- 
ful authenticity, furnishes a few additional details, but none of mo- 
ment, either as to his character or career. 

Quintus Horatius Flaccus was born VI. Id. Dec. A. U. C. 
689 (Dec. 8, B. C. 65), during the consulship of L. Aurelius Cotta 
and L. Manlius Torquatus. His father was a freedman of the 
town of Venusia, the modern Venosa, the inhabitants of which be- 
longed to the Horatian tribe, and had received his manumission be- 
fore his son was born. He had acquired a moderate independence 
in the vocation of coactor, a name borne indifferently by the collectors 
of public revenue and of money at sales by public auction. To 
which of these classes he belonged is uncertain, but most probably to 
the latter. With the fruits of his industry he had purchased a small 
property near Venusia, upon the banks of the Aufidus, the modern 
Ofanto, in the midst of the Apennines, upon the doubtful boundaries 
of Lucania and Apulia. Here the poet was born, and in this pic- 
turesque region of mountain, forest, and stream the boy became 
imbued with the love of nature, which distinguished him through 
life. 

He describes himself (C. III. 4. 9 foil.) as having lost his way, when 
a child, upon Mount Vultur, and being found asleep under a cover- 
ing of laurel and myrtle leaves, which the wood-pigeons had spread 
to shield this favorite of the gods from snakes and wild animals. The 
augury of the future poet said to have been drawn from the incident 
at the time was probably an afterthought of Horace himself, who had 
not forgotten Anacreon and the bees ; but whatever may be thought 
of the omen, the picture of the strayed child, asleep with his hands 
full of spring flowers, is pleasing. In his father's house, and in those 
of the Apulian peasantry around him, Horace had opportunities of 
becoming familiar with the simple virtues of the poor, — their inde- 
pendence, integrity, chastity, and humble worth, — which he loved to 
contrast with the luxury and vice of imperial Rome. Of his mother 



650 THE LIFE OF HORACE. 

no mention occurs, directly or indirectly, throughout his poems. 
This could scarcely have happened, had she not died while he was 
very young. He appears also to have been an only child. No doubt 
he had at an early age given evidence of superior powers ; and to this 
it may have been in some measure owing, that his father resolved to 
give him a higher education than could be obtained under a provin- 
cial schoolmaster, and, although ill able to afford the expense, took 
him to Rome when about twelve years old, and gave him the best 
education which the capital could supply. No money was spared to 
enable the boy to keep his position among his fellow-scholars of the 
higher ranks. At the same time, he was not allowed to feel any 
shame for his own order, or to aspire to a position which he was un- 
equal to maintain. His father taught him to look forward to filling 
some position akin to that in which he had himself acquired a com- 
petency, and to feel that in any sphere culture and self-respect must 
command influence, and afford the best guarantee for happiness. 
Under the stern tutorage of Orbilius Pupillus, a grammarian of high 
standing, richer in reputation than gold, whose undue exercise of 
the rod the poet has condemned to a bad immortality, he learned 
grammar, and became familiar with the earlier Latin writers and with 
Homer. He also acquired such other branches of instruction as 
were usually learned by the sons of Romans of the higher rank. 
But, what was of still more importance, during this critical period of 
his first introduction to the temptations of the capital, he enjoyed the 
advantage of his father's personal superintendence, and of a careful 
moral training. His father went with him to all his classes, and, being 
himself a man of shrewd observation and natural humor, he gave his 
son's studies a practical bearing, by directing his attention to the fol- 
lies and vices of the luxurious and dissolute society around him, and 
showing their incompatibility with the dictates of reason and common 
sense. From this admirable father Horace appears to have gathered 
many of " the rugged maxims hewn from life " with which his works 
abound, and also to have inherited that manly independence for which 
he was remarkable, and which, while assigning to all ranks their due 
influence and respect, never either overestimates or compromises its 
own. Under the homely exterior of the Apulian freedman we recog- 
nize the soul of the gentleman. His influence on his son was manifest- 
ly great. In the full maturity of his powers Horace penned a tribute 
to his worth (S. I. 6. 65 foil.), in terms which prove how often and how 
deeply he had occasion in after life to be grateful for the bias thus 
early communicated. His father's character had given a tone and 
strength to his own which, in the midst of manifold temptations, had 
kept him true to himself and to his genius. 

At what age Horace lost his father is uncertain, but probably be- 



THE LIFE OF HORACE. 65 1 

fore he left Rome for Athens, to complete his education in the Greek lit- 
erature and philosophy, under native teachers. This he did some time 
between the age of seventeen and twenty. At Athens he found many 
young men of the leading Roman families, engaged in the same pur- 
suits with himself. He was no careless student of the classics of 
Grecian literature, and, with a natural enthusiasm, he made his first 
poetical essays in their flexible and noble language. His usual good 
sense, however, soon caused him to abandon the hopeless task of em- 
ulating the Greek writers on their own ground, and he directed his 
efforts to transfusing into his own language some of the grace and 
melody of these masters of song. In the political lull between the 
battle of Pharsalia, A. U. C. 766 (B. C. 48), and the death of Julius 
Caesar, A. U. C. 710 (B. C. 44), Horace was enabled to devote him- 
self without interruption to the tranquil pursuits of the scholar. But 
when, after the latter event, Brutus came to Athens, and the patrician 
youth of Rome, fired with zeal for the cause of republican liberty, 
joined his standard, Horace, infected by the general enthusiasm, ac- 
cepted a military command in the army which was destined to en- 
counter the legions of Antony and Octavius. His rank was that of 
tribune, and his appointment excited jealousy among his brother of- 
ficers, who considered that the command of a Roman legion should 
have been reserved for men of nobler blood. Here probably he first 
came into direct collision with the aristocratic prejudices which the 
training of his father had taught him to defy, and which, later in his life, 
grudged to the freedman's son the friendship of the emperor and of 
Maecenas. At the same time he had manifestly a strong party of 
friends, who had learned to appreciate his genius and attractive quali- 
ties. It is certain that he secured the esteem of his commanders, and 
bore an active part in the perils and difficulties of the campaign, which 
terminated in the total defeat of the republican party at Philippi, A. U. 
C. 712 (B. C. 42). A playful allusion by himself to the events of 
that disastrous field (C. II. 7. 9 foil.) has been turned by many of his 
commentators into an admission of his own cowardice. This is ab- 
surd. Such a confession is the very last which any man, least of all 
a Roman, would make. The allusion could only have been dropped 
by one who felt that he had done his duty, and that it was known he 
had done it. It was no discredit to Horace to have despaired of a 
cause which its leaders had given up. After the suicide of Brutus 
and Cassius, the continuance of the contest was hopeless ; and Hor- 
ace may in his short military career have seen, in the jealousy and 
selfish ambition" of many of his party, enough to make him suspicious 
of success, even if that had been attainable. Republicans who 
sneered at the freedman's son were not likely to found any system of 
liberty worthy of the name. 



652 THE LIFE OF HORACE. 

Horace reached home, only to find his paternal acres confiscated. 
His life was spared, but nothing was left him to sustain it but his pen 
and his good spirits. He had to write for bread (E. II. 2. 50 foil.), 
and in so doing he appeared to have acquired not only considerable 
repute, but also sufficient means to purchase the place of scribe in the 
Quaestor's office, a sort of sinecure clerkship of the Treasury, which 
he continued to hold for many years, if not, indeed, to the close of his 
life. It was upon his return to Rome that he made the acquaintance 
of Virgil and Varius, who were already famous, and to them he was 
indebted for his introduction to Maecenas. The particulars of his 
first interview with his patron he has himself recorded (S. I. 6. 55 
foil.). The acquaintance rapidly ripen 1 ed into mutual esteem. It se- 
cured the position of the poet in society, and the generosity of the 
statesman placed him above the anxieties of a literary life. Through- 
out the intimate intercourse of thirty years which ensued there was 
no trace of condescension on the one hand, nor of servility on the 
other. Maecenas gave the poet a place next his heart. He must 
have respected the man who never used his influence to obtain those 
favors which were at the disposal of the emperor's minister, who 
cherished an honest pride in his own station, and who could be grate- 
ful without being obsequious. Horace is never weary of acknowledg- 
ing how much he owes to his friend. When he praises him, it is with- 
out flattery. When he soothes his anxieties or calms his fears, his 
words breathe an unmistakable sincerity. When he resists his pa- 
tron's wishes, he is firm without being ungracious. When he sports 
with his foibles, he is familiar without the slightest shade of imperti- 
nence. 

By Maecenas Horace was introduced to Octavius, probably soon 
after the period just referred to. In A. U. C. 717, a year after Horace 
had been admitted into the circle of his friends, Maecenas went to 
Brundisium, charged by Octavius to negotiate a treaty with Marcus 
Antonius. On this journey he was accompanied by Horace, who has 
left a graphic record of its incidents (S. I. 5). It is probable that 
on this occasion, or about this time, the poet was brought to the no- 
tice of the future emperor. Between the time of this journey and A. 
U. C. 722, Horace, who had in the mean time given to the world many 
of his poems, including the ten Satires of the first book, received from 
Maecenas the gift of the Sabine farm, which at once afforded him a 
competence, and all the pleasures of a country life. The gift was a 
slight one for Maecenas to bestow, but he no doubt made it as the fit- 
test and most welcome which he could offer to his friend. The farm 
was situated in the valley of Ustica, about twelve miles from Tibur 
(Tivoli), and, among its other charms, possessed the valuable attrac- 
tion for Horace, that it was within an easy distance of Rome. Here 



THE LIFE OF HORACE. 653 

he spent a considerable part of every year. Here he could entertain 
a stray friend from town, — his patron Maecenas, upon occasion, — 
and the delights of this agreeable retreat were doubtless more than a 
compensation for the plain fare, or the thin home-grown wine with 
which its resources alone enabled him to regale them. 

The life of Horace from the time of his intimacy with Maecenas 
appears to have been one of comparative ease and of great social en- 
joyment He was soon admitted to the friendship of Augustus, and 
to the close of his life his favor at court continued without a cloud. 
Augustus not only liked the man, but entertained a profound admira- 
tion for the poet. That Horace had fought with Brutus against him, 
did not operate to his prejudice. The poet was not ashamed of the 
past, and Maecenas and Augustus were just the men to respect his 
independence, and to like him the better for it. Their favor did not 
spoil him. He was ever the same kindly, urbane, and simple man 
of letters he had originally been, never presuming upon his position, 
nor looking superciliously on others less favored than himself. At all 
times generous and genial, years only mellowed his wisdom and gave 
a finer polish to his verse. The unaffected sincerity of his nature 
and the rich vein of his genius made him courted by the rich and no- 
ble (C. II. 18. 9 foil.). He mixed on easy terms with the choicest 
society of Rome ; and what must that society have been which includ- 
ed Virgil, Varius, Plotius, Tibullus, Pollio, and a host of others who 
were not only ripe scholars, but had borne and were bearing a leading 
part in the great actions and events of that memorable epoch ? 

The health of Horace, never very vigorous, appears to have de- 
clined for some years before his death. He was doomed to see some 
of his dearest friends drop into the grave before him. This to him, 
who gave to friendship the ardor which other men give to love, was 
the severest wound that time could bring. " The shocks of Chance, 
the blows of Death " smote him heavily ; and the failure of youth, 
and spirits, and health, in the inevitable decay of nature, saddened 
the thoughtful poet in his solitude, and tinged the gayest society with 
melancholy. Maecenas's health was a source of deep anxiety to him ; 
and one of the most exquisite Odes (C. II. 17) addressed to that 
valued friend, in answer to some outburst of despondency, while it 
expresses the depth of the poet's regard, bears in it the tone of a 
man somewhat weary of the world. He declares that, if untimely 
fate shall snatch away his patron, he will not survive him ; and 
the prophecy was fulfilled almost to the very letter. The same year 
(A. U. C. 746, B. C. 8 ) witnessed the death of both Horace and 
Maecenas. The latter died about the middle of the year, committing 
his friend, in almost his last words, to the care of Augustus : 
Horatii Flacci, ut mei, esto memor. On the 27th of November, 



654 THE LIFE OF HORACE. 

when he was on the eve of completing his fifty-seventh year, Horace 
himself died, of an illness so short and sudden that he was unable to 
make his will in writing. He declared it verbally before witnesses, 
leaving to Augustus the little which he possessed. He was buried 
on the Esquiline Hill, near his patron and friend Maecenas. 

There are no. authentic busts or medallions of Horace, and his de- 
scriptions of himself are vague. He was short in stature ; his eyes 
and hair were dark, but the latter was early silvered with gray. He 
suffered at one time with an affection of the eyes, and seems to have 
been by no means robust in constitution. His habits were temperate 
and frugal, as a rule, although he was far from insensible to the 
charms of a good table and good wine, heightening and heightened 
by the zest of good company. But he seems to have had neither the 
stomach nor the taste for habitual indulgence in the pleasures of the 
table. Latterly he became corpulent and sensitive to the severity of 
the seasons, and sought at Baiae and Tibur the refreshment or shel- 
ter which his mountain retreat had ceased to yield to his delicate 
frame. 

Of all his writings, Horace himself appears to have ascribed the 
greatest value to the Odes, and to have rested upon them his claims 
to posthumous fame. They were the result of great labor, as he him- 
self indicates (C. IV. 2. 27 foil.) ; and yet they bear pre-eminently the 
charm of simplicity and ease. He was the first to mould the Latin 
tongue to the Greek lyric measures ; and his success in this difficult 
task may be estimated from the fact that, as he was the first, so was 
he the greatest, of the Roman lyrists. Quinctilian's criticism upon 
the Odes can scarcely be improved : Lyricorum Horatius fere solus 
legi dignus. Nam et insurgit aliquando, et plenus est jucunditatis et 
gratiae, et varus figuris, et verbis felicissime audax. In this airy and 
playful grace, in happy epithets, in variety of imagery, and exquisite 
felicity of expression, the Odes are still unsurpassed among the writ- 
ings of any period or language. It is these qualities and a prevailing 
vein of genial and sober wisdom, which imbue them with a charm 
quite peculiar, and have given them a hold upon the minds of edu- 
cated men which no change of taste has shaken. 

Horace was not and could not have been a national poet. He 
wrote only for cultivated men, and under the shadow of a court. Be- 
yond a very narrow circle his poems could not have been read. The 
very language in which he wrote must have been unintelligible to the 
people, and he had none of those popular sympathies which inspire 
the lyrics of Burns or Beranger. The Roman populace of his time 
was perhaps as little likely to command his respect as any which the 
world has ever seen ; and there was no people, in the sense in which 
we understand the word, to appeal to. And yet Horace has many 



THE LIFE OF HORACE. 655 

points in common with Burns. " A man 's a man for a' that," in the 
whole vein of its sentiment is thoroughly Horatian. In their large 
and genial views of life they are closely akin ; but the fiery glow of 
the peasant poet is subdued to a temperate heat in the gentler and 
physically less energetic nature of Horace. 

In his amatory verses the same distinction is visible. Horace 
writes much about love, but he is never thoroughly in love. He 
seems to have known by experience just enough of the tender passion 
to write pretty verses about it, and to rally, not unsympathetically, 
such of his friends as had not escaped so lightly from its flame. The 
attempt to make out the Lydias and Lalages, the Lyces and Phrynes 
of his Odes as real objects of attachment is one of the many follies 
in which his commentators have wasted much dreary labor. 

Horace's Satires and Epistles are less read, yet they are perhaps in- 
trinsically more valuable than his lyric poetry. As reflecting " the 
age and body of the time," they possess the highest historical value. 
Through them the modern scholar is able to form a clearer idea in all 
probability of the state of society in Rome in the Augustan age, than 
of any other phase of social development in the history of nations. 
Horace's observation of character is subtle and exact, his knowledge 
of the heart is profound, his power of graphic delineation great. A 
genial humor plays over his verses, and a kindly wisdom dignifies 
them. As a living and brilliant commentary on life, as a storehouse 
of maxims of practical wisdom, couched in language the most apt 
and concise, as a picture of men and manners, which will be always 
fresh and always true, because it was true once, and because hu- 
man nature will always reproduce itself under analogous circum- 
stances, his Satires, and still more his Epistles, will have a permanent 
value for mankind. In these, as in his Odes, he inculcates what is 
fitting and decorous, and tends most to tranquillity of mind and body, 
rather than the severe virtues of a high standard of moral purity. 
To live at peace with the world, to shun the extremes of avarice, lux- 
ury, and ambition, to outrage none of the laws of nature, to enjoy 
life wisely, and not to load it with the cares which the lapse of a few 
brief years will demonstrate to be foolishness, is very nearly the sum 
of his philosophy. Of religion, as we understand it, he had little. 
Although himself little of a practical worshipper (C. I. 34. 1), he re- 
spected the sincerity of others in their belief in the old gods. But, 
in common with the more vigorous intellects of the time, he had out- 
grown the effete creed of his countrymen. He was content to use it 
for poetical purposes, but he could not accept as matter of belief the 
mythology about which the forms of the contemporary worship still 
clustered. 



NOTES 



ON THE 



SELECTIONS FROM HORACE. 



THE ODES. Book I. 

ODE I. — It is probable that the first three books of Odes were 
published together, with this as a preface, A. U. C. 730, B. C. 24. 
It is a graceful dedication to Maecenas of a work the composition of 
which had occupied and amused the poet at intervals for some years. 
It was probably at his patron's instigation that he arranged his fugi- 
tive pieces, and put them forth in this collected form. 

1. Atavis = ancestors ; properly, an ancestor in the fifth degree, 
thus : pater, avus, proavus, abavus, atavus. Maecenas belonged to 
the family of Cilnii, formerly Lucumones or princes of Etruria. — 2. 
Cf. Virg. G. II. 40. — 3. Sunt quos = aliquos. The indicative is 
used when particular persons are alluded to, as here the Greeks in 
opposition tb the Romans. The subjunctive is used, as Dillenb. ex- 
presses it, quum non tarn esse aliquid ostenditur quam quale quid sit 
describitur. Cf. Gr. 501. 2. A. & S. 264. 6 and R. 4. Curriculo 
= either the chariot (from currere, as vehiculum from vehere) or the 
course. On Olympicum, see on Ov. T. IV. 10. 95, and Virg. G. I. 
59.-4. Collegisse. Gr. 542.. 2. A. & S. 268. 2, R. 2. The per- 
fect instead of the present is used, like the Greek aorist, to express 
a complete action, or one frequently repeated, not a continuing 
course of action. Cf. C. I. 34. 16; III. 2. 30, etc. Meta = the 
goal ; a conical pillar at the end of the course, round which the 
chariots turned on their way back to the starting-place. A skilful 
driver turned the goal as closely as possible without touching it ; 
hence evitata rotis. Fervidis. Cf. Milton : " then stayed the fervid 
wheels." — 5. Falma; i.e. the palm-branch which was presented 
with the crown to the victor in the games. — 6. Terrarum — Deos 
= exalts them, (as if they were) lords of the world, to the gods. 
The whole passage has been a very perplexing one to the critics. 
Some make dominos in apposition with Deos. Some put a period 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE I. 657 

after nobilis, and consider evehit as impersonal ; translating : It ex- 
alts the lords of the earth (i. e. ironically, the Romans), to the gods 
— this one, if, etc. The chief difficulty with the punctuation and in- 
terpretation we have followed is, that it leaves hunc and ilium to de- 
pend on j'uvat; a harsh construction (though not so bad as joining 
them with dimoveas, as some have done), but one which is adopted 
and defended by Dillenb. and others. On evehit ad deos, cf. C. IV. 
2. 17, 18. — 8. Tergeminis honoribus is by most critics under- 
stood to refer to the three curule magistracies, those of the aedile, 
praetor, and consul ; but some make it =maximis honoribtis. The case 
is ablative ; but a few of the commentators make it dative for ad hono- 
res. On tollere, see Gr. 553. V. A. & S. 271, N. 3 ; 274, R. 7 (b). 
The construction is a very common one in Horace. — 10. Libycis. 
The great bulk of the corn consumed at Rome was imported from 
Sicily and Libya. See C. III. 16. 26, 31. The area was a raised 
floor on which the corn was threshed ; and after the wind had win- 
nowed it the floor was swept, and the corn was thus collected. See 
Virg. G. I. 178 foil., where full directions are given for making an 
area. — 11. Scindere is the proper word for the plough ; findere for 
the hoe or smaller instruments. Attalicis conditionibus ; i. e. the 
most extravagant terms. There were three kings of Pergamus of 
this name, which was proverbial for riches. The third left his great 
wealth to the Romans, B. C. 134. See C. II. 18. 5. — 13. Dimo- 
veas. From the meaning of de, down from, demoveo is more properly 
used when the place from which the removal takes place is expressed, 
and dimoveo, when the sentence is absolute, as here. Trabe. Gr. 
705. III. A. & S. 324. 3. Cf. carina, C. I. 35. 7. Cypria. See on 
Virg. A. I. 622. Cypria, Myrtoum, Icariis, Africum, are all particu- 
lar names for general, used to give life to the description. — 14. The 
Myrtoan Sea, like the Icarian (see on Ov. M. VIII. 230), was a part 
of the Aegean. — 15. Fluctibus. Gr. 385 and 5. A. & S. 223, R. 
2 {/>). Africum = the west-southwest wind, which elsewhere Horace 
calls praeceps, protervus, etc. Cf. Virg. A. I. 85. — 16. Otium — sui 
= the peaceful fields about his native town. — 18. Pati. Gr. 552. 3. 
A. & S. 270, R. 1 (a). This is a Greek construction, and very fre- 
quent in Horace. Pauperiem is not extreme poverty (egestas), but 
narrow means. Cf. C. III. 29. 56. — 19. Est qui See on sunt 
qtcos, v. 3. Massici. See on Virg. G. II. 143. — 20. Solido — 
die ; i. e. to break in upon the hours of business. The solidus dies 
ended at the dinner hour, which, with industrious people, was the 
ninth in summer and tenth in winter. The luxurious dined earlier, 
the busy sometimes later. — 21. Viridi = evergreen. See on Ov. 
M. I. 104. Membra. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. — 22. Caput = 
the source. Sacrae; i.e. to the nymphs of the stream. Cf. Virg. 
42 



658 NOTES ON HORACE. 

E. I. 53. — 23. The lituus was curved in shape (but less so than the 
cornu) and sharp in tone, and used by cavalry ; the tuba was straight 
and of deep tone, used by infantry. Cf. Ov. M. I. 98. For the con- 
struction, see Gr. 385. 5. A. & S. 245. II. 2 and R. 1. — 24. Mat- 
ribus. Gr. 388. 4. A. & S. 225. II. So catulis, v. 27. — 25. De- 
testata; used passively. Gr. 221. 2. A. & S. 162. 17. Manet = 
pernoctat. Jove = coelo. Cf. Virg. E. VII. 60; G. I. 418; II. 
325, 419. So Ennius : Istic est hie Jupiter quern dico, quern Graeci 
vocant aerem. — 28. Teretes = firmly twisted. Plagas ; nets 
of thick rope, used in hunting the larger beasts. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 
131. Marsus (see on Virg. G. II. 167) ; for Marsicus, as in C. II. 
20. 18. So Bithynus, C. I. 35. 7 ; Colekus, II. 13. 8 ; Ita/us, II. 
13, 18 ; Maurus, I. 22. 2, etc. — 29. The ivy, sacred to Bacchus, 
made a fit garland for a lyric poet. — 31. Cum Satyris = et saty- 
rorum. Cf. C. I. 12. 44; 24. 4 ; III. 1. 36; 3. 24; 18. 12, etc. — 
33. Euterpe, the Muse, was said to have invented the tibia, and she 
especially presided over music. Polyhymnia, or Polymnia, another 
Muse, invented the lyre. — 34. Lesboum ; i. e. of Sappho and Al- 
caeus, who were natives of Mytilene in the island of Lesbos. See 
on Ov. M. X. 55. Tendere. See on tollere, v. 8. — 36. Gr. 705. 
V. A. & S. 324. 5. 

ODE II. — The prodigies described at the beginning of this justly 
celebrated Ode are those which were said to have followed the death 
of Julius Caesar. They are related also by Virgil, G. I. 466-489, 
which passage and the verses that follow it to the end of the book, 
should be read in connection with this Ode. It is very probable that 
Horace had this description in his mind when he wrote. He refers 
to these prodigies as evidences of the divine wrath for the guilt of the 
civil wars. He then invokes one god after another to come and re- 
store the state, and finally fixes upon Mercury, whom he entreats to 
take upon himself the form of a man (i. e. Augustus), and not to leave 
the earth until he has accomplished his mission and conquered the 
enemies of Rome. The ode was probably written on the return of 
Augustus to Rome, after the taking of Alexandria, A. U. C. 725, 
B. C. 29. 

1. Terris. Gr. 379. 5. A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. Dirae belongs to 
both nivis and grandinis. This is very common in Horace. Cf. C. I. 
31. 16 ; 34. 8 ; III. 2. 16 ; IV. 14. 4, etc. — 2. Rubente = red ; i. e. 
with the reflected glare of the thunderbolt. — 3. Dextera. Gr. 148. 
3. 1). A. & S. 106. Jaculatus ; with the accus. of the thing struck, 
as in the only three instances in which Horace uses the word. In 
Virg. A. II. 276 the dative is used. Arces ; the saCred buildings on 
the Capitoline Hill. — 5. Terruit ne = terruit, ut metuerent ne. — 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE II. 659 

6. Pyrrhae. See on Ov. M. I. 260 foil. — 7. Proteus. See on Ov. 
M. II. 9. — 8. Visere. See on tollere, C. I. 8. — 11. Superjecto 

(sc. terris) = poured over the earth. — 12. Damae is both masc. and 
fern. See Gr. — 13. Flavum; because of the sand washed down 
in its stream. Horace does not mean that he himself had seen these 
things, but that his generation had seen them. Retortis — undis = 
its waters driven violently back from the shore of the Etruscan sea ; 
i. e. from its mouth. Some take littore Etrusco for the Etruscan or 
right bank of the river, as opposed to sinistra ripa, v. 18. — 15. De- 
jectum. Gr. 569. A. & S. 276. II. Monumenta regis ; i. e. the 
palace of Nuraa adjoining the temple of Vesta. See on Virg. G. I. 
498. — 17. Nimium ; with querent! Tiber is represented as tak- 
ing upon himself, without the sanction of Jove, and in consequence 
of Ilia's complaints, to avenge the death of Julius Caesar, the de- 
scendant of lulus, her ancestor. Ilia, or Rea (not Rhea) Silvia, is 
variously reported to have been married to the Tiber and the Anio, 
because into one of those streams she was thrown by order of Amu- 
lius. — 18. Sinistra ripa (i.e. looking down stream); on which 
Rome was situated. — 21. Audiet — ferrum = shall hear that citi- 
zens have sharpened the sword ; i. e. inter se, for civil war. — 22. 
Quo — perirent = by which it were better that the hostile Parthians 
should die. Persians, Medes, and Parthians are names freely inter- 
changed by Horace. The Parthian Empire, at this time, extended 
nearly from the Indus to the Roman province of Syria, into which 
the Parthians often made incursions. See v. 51. The name of Au- 
gustus did something towards keeping them in check, but they were 
held by the Romans to be their most formidable enemies. — 23, 24. 
Vitio — juventus = our children thinned by the crimes of their 
fathers ; not only by bloodshed, but by immorality. — 26. Imperi. 
Gr. 45. 5. 1). A. & S. 52. Rebus. Gr. 384. II. A. & S. 223, N. — 
27, 28. Virgines. Vesta was the tutelary goddess of Rome. See on 
Virg. G. I. 499. She turns a deaf ear to the prayers of her virgins, 
because Caesar as Pontifex Maximus had particular charge of her 
temple and rites. Carmina, hymns, is opposed to prece, as a set 
formula to other prayers. — 29. Partes = munus, ojficium. — 30. 
Venias. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. — 31. Humeros. See on 
membra, C. I. 21. — 32. Augur; as the god of divination. Cf. 
Virg. A. IV. 376. — 33. Mavis ; sc. venire ad scelera nostra expianda. 
Erycina. See on Ov. M. V. 363. Cf. Virg. A. V. 759. Apollo is 
invoked as the steadfast friend of Troy ; Venus, as the mother of 
Aeneas and the Julian family ; and Mars (Auctor), as the father of 
Romulus. — 34. Jocus = Mirth. Circum ; the prep, after the 
noun, as often in the poets. Cf. C. III. 3. 11 ; Virg. A. I. 32 ; II. 792, 
etc. — 36. Respicis == thou regardest. — 38. Leves = burnished. 



660 NOTES ON HORACE. 

— 39. The order is, et vultus Mauri peditis acer in cruentum hostem. 
Peditis ; i. e. equo dejecti. The troops of Mauritania were chiefly 
cavalry. — 41. Juvenem ; i. e. Augustus, who was forty years old at 
the time. Cf. Virg. G. I. 500. Juvenis and adolescens were used of 
any age between pueritia and senectus. Cicero speaks of himself as 
adolescens at the age of forty-four, and as senex at sixty-two. — 42. 
Ales ; with filius. See Virg. A. IV. 239 foil. Mercury is selected as 
the representative of Augustus, because he is the messenger of peace. 

— 43. Filius. Gr. 369. 2. A. & S. 52. Vocari. See on tollere, 
C. I. 1. 8. — 45. Serus; adj. for adv., as often. Cf. C. I. 7. 17 ; 10. 
3 ; 12. 57, etc. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15. Redeas. Gr. 488. 
I. A. & S. 260, R. 6. So tollat, ames, and sinas. — 46. Laetus = 
propitious. Quirini. See on Virg. A. I. 292. — 49. Triumphos ; 
object of ames. Cf. C. I. 1. 19, 20. Augustus had just celebrated, 
or was about to celebrate, three triumphs on three successive days, 
for his victories, (1.) over the Gauls, Pannonians, and Dalmatians, (2.) 
at Actium, and (3.) at Alexandria. — 50. Pater. The title of pater 
patriae was not assumed by Augustus till A. U. C. 752. It was the 
highest title of honor that could be given to a citizen, and was first 
given by the Senate to Cicero (the army had previously bestowed it 
on Camillus), on the suppression of Catiline's conspiracy. Princeps 
(sc. senatus); a title taken by Augustus, A. U. C. 726. — 51. Inultos 
= unpunished. See on v. 22. — 52. Caesar. Macleane speaks of 
the unexpected introduction of the name of Caesar at the end of the 
ode, as " an instance of consummate art." 

ODE III. — This Ode is addressed to the ship which was carrying 
Virgil the poet to Greece, perhaps on that voyage from which he 
only returned to die, A. U. C. 735, B. C. 19. 

1. Sic, in this place, is = an emphatic utinam ; the object of the 
wish being a means by which the desired end may be accomplished. 
It is not precisely like those passages in which sic follows the prayer 
on which it depends, where condition and consequence are clearly 
marked, and an opposite wish is implied, if the condition be not ful- 
filled. Cf. Virg. E. IX. 30. — Diva ; i. e. Venus, who, as born of the 
sea, was supposed to have power over it. Cf. Virg. A. V. 800, 801. 
Hence she was sometimes called marina, had temples built for 
her in harbors, etc. Cypri. See on Virg. A. I. 622. Gr. 399. 3. 
A.& S. 213, R. 1 (3). — 2. Fratres ; i. e. Castor and Pollux, who were 
worshipped as the protectors of travellers by sea. The Greeks called 
them dpcoyovavTcti, "sailor-helpers." They were placed by Jupiter 
in the constellation Gemini ; but lucida sidera here is thought by 
some to refer to the electrical phenomena, now known among sailors 
as " St. Elmo's fires," which the ancients supposed to indicate the 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE IV. 66 1 

presence of Castor and Pollux. — 3. Pater; i.e. Aeolus. See on 
Virg. A. I. 52 foil. — 4. The Iapygian or northwest wind, so called 
from Iapygia in Apulia whence it blows down the Adriatic, was favor- 
able for a voyage from Brundusium, where Virgil would embark for 
Greece. — 6. Finibus ; dative with debes and reddas. Macleane con- 
siders it the ablative of the place where the debt was to be paid. — 
8. Cf. C. II. 17. 5.-9. Illi. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). — 
12. Africum. See on C. I. 1. 15. — 13. Aquilonibus ; the north 
winds. See on fiuctibzts, C. I. 1. 15. — 14. Hyadas. See on Ov. M. 
III. 595; Virg. G. I. 138 - T A. I. 744.— 15. Arbiter = tyrant. Cf. 
C. III. 3. 5. Hadriae = the Adriatic. Gr. 44. A. & S. 42. 2. — 
16. Sen (sive) is omitted before tollere. This is common in Horace. 
Ponere = to smooth. Cf. Virg. A. I. 66. — 17. Gradum = ap- 
proach ; i. e. what form of coming death should he fear, etc. — 
18. Cf. Milton : " Sight so deform what heart of rock could long 
Dry-eyed behold ? " The ancients wept more freely than men do now. 
Caesar, describing the effect of fear on his men, says : Hi neque vul- 
tum finger e neque inter dum lacrimas tenere potuerunt. (B. G. I. 39). 

— 20. Acroceraunia ; a promontory in Epirus (now Cape Linguetta) 
the western end of the Monies Ceraunii. Cf. Virg. G. I. 332 ; A. III. 
506. — 22. Dissociabili ; used actively, like ' illacrimabilem, C. II. 
14. 16, which is used passively, C. IV. 9. 26. — 24. See on Ov. M. I. 
134. — 25. Audax — perpeti; i. e. bold to endure all sufferings. Per- 
peti=to endure to the end. — 26. Vetitum with nefas is not alto- 
gether redundant. It expresses crimes which are obviously forbidden, 
as shown by the obstacles thrown in the way of their commission. — 
27. Genus =fi/ius ; i. e. Prometheus, who stole fire from heaven 
and gave it to mortals. For this he was chained to a pillar, where 
an eagle fed upon his liver, which grew as fast as it was consumed ; 
and Pandora was sent down to earth (for the various forms of the 
myth see any Classical Dictionary) with all the ills and diseases that 
have since been the lot of mortals. — 28. Mala = mischievous (in 
its consequences). — 32. The order is tardaqtie necessitous leti, prius 
semoti, corripuit gradum. — 34. Daedalus. See Ov. M. VIII. 183 
and Virg. A. VI. 14 foil. — 36. Perrupit; last syllable lenghtened by 
the arsis. Acheronta ; put, as often, for the lower world. See on 
Virg. G. II. 492. Herculeus. Gr. 398. 2. A. & S. 211, R. 4 (a). 
The reference is to the twelfth labor of Hercules. See on Virg. A. 
VI. 395. — 37. Ardui. Gr. 396. III. ; 441. A. & S. 212, R. 3, N. 3. 

— 40. Iracunda ponere fulmina = to lay aside his wrathful thun- 
derbolts. 

ODE IV. — L. Sestius, whose name is used in this Ode, served 
with Horace under Brutus, and they were no doubt on terms of inti- 



662 NOTES ON HORACE. 

macy. The poem professes to be written at the beginning of spring, 
and its subject is the uncertainty of life and the duty of enjoying it. 

1. Solvitur. Cf. the description of spring, Virg. G. I. 44 foil. 
Favoni = of Favonius ; i. e. Zephyr, or the west wind. — 2. Ma- 
chinae ; the rollers used to launch vessels after they had been drawn 
up on shore during the winter. Carinas. See on trabe, C. I. 1. 13. 
— 3. Neque . . . aut . . . nee. The two first of these form one 
branch of the sentence, and the last the other. — 4. Canis pruinis 
= the hoar frost. — 5. Cytherea ; from the island Cythera. See on 
Virg. A. I. 680. — 6. Gratiae = the Graces ; daughters of Jupiter 
and Euronyme, according to Hesiod (cf. Milton's L 1 Allegro), the 
personifications of grace and beauty, and usually, as here, the attend 
ants of Venus. Decentes = comely. — 7. Graves = laborious 
Cyclopum. See on Ov. M. I. 259. — 8. Vulcanus. See on Ov 
M. II. 5. Urit = kindles up. Cf. incendimus aras, Virg. A. Ill 
279. Vulcan is hard at work, getting bolts ready for the thunder 
storms of summer. — 9. Nitidum ; i. e. with oil. Cf. C. II. 3. 13 
Impedire = vincire. The myrtle was sacred to Venus. Cf. Virg. 
E. VII. 62. — 11, 12. Fauno = Faunus ; the Latin god of fields and 
shepherds, worshipped also as an oracular divinity. From his varied 
manifestations, the idea arose of a plurality of Fauns. See on Ov. 
M. I. 193 and Virg. G. I. 10. The Faunalia took place on the Ides 
of December. But a lesser festival was observed on the Ides of Feb- 
ruary, at the advent of Faunus, or Pan, the two being identified by the 
later Romans. See on Ov. M. XI. 147 and Virg. G. 1. 17. At that 
time the flocks and herds went out to graze, and the god was invoked 
for their protection. Immolare takes either the accusative or the 
ablative of the victim. Here the MSS. vary and many editors adopt 
agna and haedo. — 13. Pulsat = knocks at the door. Cf. Ov. 
Heroid. XXI. 46 : Persephone nostras pulsat acerba fores. — 14. Re- 
ges =the rich ; as often in Horace. Cf C. II. 14. 11 ; C. II. 18. 34; 
E. I. 10. 33 ; A. P. 434, etc. — 15. Longam = far-reaching. — 16, 

17. Premet belongs more properly to nox, but is joined, by zeugma, 
with Manes and domus. Gr. 704. I. 2. A. & S. 323 (b) (2). 
Fabulae = unreal, visionary. Cf. C. IV. 7. 16 and Persius, S. V. 
152 : cinis et Manes et fabula fies. Exilis = bare, or joyless. Some 
make it = shadowy. Simul = simul ac, as often in Horace. Cf. C. 
I. 9. 9 ; C. I. 12. 27 ; C. II. 16. 2 ; C. III. 4. 37 ; C. IV. 7. 10, etc. — 

18. Regna vini. It was usual at feasts for one to be chosen by lot 
or by throw of dice, as president, called by the Greeks crvtmoaiapxps, 
and by the Romans rex bibendi or magister bibendi, his office being 
principally to regulate the quantity and quality of wine to be drunk. 
Talis = dice ; not the adjective with vini, as a few of the editors 
have made it. — 19. Quo. Gr. 414. 2. A. & S. 247. 1. (2). 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE VII. 663 

ODE VII. — It is uncertain whether this Ode is addressed to 
Munatius Plancus who was consul A. U. C. 712, B. C. 42, or to his 
son, or to some other Plancus. Its subject is the praise of a quiet 
life and convivial enjoyment. The story of Teucer is taken from 
some source unknown to us, probably from the Greek. 

1. Rhodon = Rhodes ; the capital of the island Rhodes, in the 
Aegean, off the coast of Caria, famous for its delightful climate (to 
which some critics refer claram) as well as for its architectural 
beauty. My tilenen = Mytilene, or Mitylene, the chief city of Lesbos, 
which Cicero (de Leg. Agr. II. 16) calls urbs et natura et situ et descrip- 
tion aedificiorum et pidchritudine imprimis nobilis. — 2. Epheson = 
Ephesus ; the chief of the twelve Ionian cities on the coast of Asia 
Minor. Bimarisve Corinthi. See on Ov. M. V. 407. — 3. Thebes, 
the chief city of Boeotia, was said to be the birthplace of Bacchus. 
Delphi, on Mount Parnasus, was famous for its oracle of Apollo. 
See on Ov. M. I. 313 -321. — 4. Tempe. See on Virg. G. II. 469. 
— 5-7. Sunt — olivam = There are those who make it the single 
business of their lives to tell of chaste Minerva's city in unbroken 
song, and to gather a branch from every olive to entwine their brow. 
Perpetuum carmen = a continuous poem, such as an Epic. " A 
branch from every olive " (more literally, " an olive-branch from 
every quarter,") means that the various themes connected with the 
glory of Athens are as olive-trees, from each of which a branch is 
plucked to bind the poet's brow. The olive was sacred to Minerva. 
Cf. Virg. G. II. 181. 8. Plurimus = many a one ; common with a 
noun, but nowhere else found alone. In honorem, for the ablative, 
is an unusual construction. — 9. Homer calls Argos i-rnrofiorov (= 
aptum equis), the plain in which the city was built being famous for 
breeding horses. Juno had a celebrated temple between Argos and 
Mycenae, Dites = noXvxpvaos. Homer, II. VII. 180. Cf. claros 
My/ctnas, Virg. A. I. 284. — 10. Patiens ; referring to the patient 
endurance which was the result of the Spartan discipline. — 11. 
Larissa was a city of Thessaly, on the Peneus, in an extensive plain 
famed for its fertility. Percussit = has struck ; the English verb 
being used in the same figurative way as the Latin. — 12. Albuneae. 
Albunea, one of the Sibyls worshipped at Tibur, gave her name to a 
grove and fountain. There is a beautiful ruin at Tivoli which still 
goes by the name of " the Temple of the Sibyl." — 13, 14. The Anio, 
now the Tcverone, was famous for its falls. Tiburnus, or Tiburtus, 
was one of the mythical founders of Tibur. The orchards of Tibur 
were celebrated. — 15. Albus = clear ; because it clears the sky. 
Cf. clarus Aquilo, Vjrg. G. I. 460. Deterget; an older form than 
dctcr^t. — 17. Sapiens. See on series, C. I. 2. 45. — 21. Tui ; be- 
cause he probably had a villa there. Teucer was brother of Ajax, 



664 NOTES ON HORACE. 

and son of Telamon, king of Salamis, the island on the southern 
coast of Attica where Themistocles defeated the forces of Xerxes. 
When he returned from Troy his father refused to receive him, be- 
cause he came without his brother, whereupon he went with his fol- 
lowers to Cyprus, and built a city there which he called after his 
native place, Salamis. Quum fugeret tamen is an imitation of 
the Greek kcu (pevycov o/jlcos- But this use of tamen is not uncom- 
mon in Cicero. Teucer selected Hercules as his protector, and so 
wore a crown of poplar, which was sacred to that hero. See Virg. E. 
VII. 61. — 22. Lyaeo. See on Ov. M. XI. 67. Cf. Virg. G. II. 229 ; 
A. I. 686, etc. — 25. Melior — parente = Fortune, kinder than 
my father. — 27. Duce et auspice. Horace here puts into Teucer's 
lips technical distinctions of which he could know nothing. The com- 
mander-in-chief of a Roman army had a power called imperium given 
him, in virtue of which his acts in the war in which he was engaged 
were done on behalf of the state. He alone had the power of taking 
the auspices under which the war was carried on. The difference 
between dux and anspex was the difference between a commander 
who had the imperium (and therefore the auspicium) and one who 
had not. If an imperator commanded in person, the war was said to 
be carried on under his ductus as well as his auspicia ; otherwise 
only under his auspicia, his legatus being the dux. — 29. Ambiguam 
= of doubtful name ; i. e. liable to be confounded with the old Sa- 
lamis. Tellure ; i. e. in Cyprus. — 30. Cf. Virg. A. I. 198 foil. 

ODE IX. — This is a drinking song for the winter, imitated from 
an Ode of Alcaeus. A party is supposed to be assembled in the 
city, and one calls on the master of the feast to bring out his best 
wine, and make the fire burn bright, that they may banish care and 
all thought of the future, since youth is the time for innocent enjoy- 
ment. 

1, 2. Stet = stands out ; i. e. having a fixed and prominent ap- 
pearance. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 300. See on Adspice ut, Virg. E. V. 6. So- 
racte was one of the Faliscan range of hills, about 2,200 feet high, 
and twenty-four miles from Rome. It is seen very clearly from the 
northern part of the city. —4. Laborantes. Cf. C. II. 9. 7. — 5. 
Constiterint == have ceased flowing. Acuto is applied to cold, 
like our words sharp, keen. Horace applies it to heat also. See E. 
I. 10. 17. — 7. Deprome = draw out; i.e. from the diota (so 
called from its having two ears, &Ta, or handles), or amphora, testa, or 
cadus ; all which were names for the vessels of .earthenware or glass 
in which the wine was kept, as we keep it in bottles. The name of 
the wine is applied, by metonymy, to the vessel containing it. — 8. 
Thaliarche = feast-master. See on C. I. 4. 18. Some critics have 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE X. 665 

thought it a proper name by which the poet addresses one of his 
friends ; C. Proculeius, Ritter thinks, because the quantity of the syl- 
lables of the two names is the same (as was customary in fictitious 
names, it is said), and for some minor reasons. — 9. Permitte 
divis. Cf. Milton : " Live well ; how long or short permit to Heaven." 
Simul. See on C. I. 4. 17. — 10. Fervido = boiling. Cf. Virg. 
G. I. 327. —13. Sit futurum. Gr. 525. A. & S. 265. Fuge = 
noli. Gr. 552. 1. A. & S. 271, N. 3. — 14. Quern dierum cum- 
que = quemcumqice diem. Gr. 187. 5; 396. III. A. & S. 136, R. 
3; 212, R. 2. Dabit. Gr. 475. 3. A. & S. 259, R. 4 (3).— 16. 
Puer = while you are young. Gr. 363. 3. A. & S. 204, R. 1 (a). 
— 17. Virenti; sc. tibi. Gr. 386. 2. A. & S. 224, R. 1. — 18. 
Campus; sc. Martins. See on Virg. A. VI. 873. Areae were 
open places about the temples and elsewhere, used as promenades 
and for games. — 20. Composita = appointed, agreed upon. 
Repetautur. Gr. 488. II. A. & S. 260, R. 6. — 21, 22. The 
order is, Et nunc gratus risus (repetatur) ab intimo angido, proditor 
latentis puellae. — 24. Male pertinaci = mischievously obstinate, or 
(since male may be taken in either sense) not obstinate ; that " yield- 
ingly resists," as an old English ballad has it. Cf. Virg. E. III. 65 
and Thomson's " maid, On purpose guardless, or affecting sleep." 

ODE X. — In this Ode, which is a translation or close adaptation 
of one written by Alcaeus, the attributes and legends belonging to 
Hermes, the Greek divinity, are applied to Mercurius, the Latin, 
who was properly the god presiding over commerce. 

1. See on Virg. A. IV. 247 foil. — 2. Feros — recentum = the 
rude manners of the early race of men. Voce. Hermes was the 
herald of Zeus and the god of eloquence. Decorae = graceful ; 
i. e. giving grace to the limbs. — 6. Lyrae. Hermes was said, when 
a child, to have taken the shell of a tortoise and put strings to it, 
making the lyre. — 7. Hermes, as the god of gain, was the patron of 
thieves. — 9. Translate in the following order : Olim Apollo, dimi 
te puentm terret (terrebat) minaci voce, nisi reddidisses boves per do- 
lum amotas, risit vidiais ( spoliatus ) pharetra. Hermes is also said 
to have stolen, when a child, some cows of Apollo's. After some 
time, that god discovered the thief, and, when threatening to punish 
him if he did not restore them, he turned and found his bow and 
arrows gone ; and Horace says he smiled at the expertness of the 
theft. This story is said to have been invented by Alcaeus. — 13. 
Atridas. See on Virg. A. I. 458. — 14. Ilio ; here neuter, from 
/lion, or Ilium. , See feminine form, C. IV. 9. 18. Priamus. Cf. 
Virg. A. I. 483-487. —15. Thessalos ignes; i.e. the watch-fires 
of the Thessalian troops of Achilles. Trojae ; dative with iniqua. 



666 NOTES ON HORACE. 

— 17-19. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 242-244, where also we have a descrip- 
tion of his virga, or caduceus. On levem cf. Ov. M. X. 14. De- 
orum ; partitive genitive. 

ODE XI. — The swarms of impostors from the East, who pre- 
tended to tell fortunes at Rome, in the time of the Empire, became a 
public nuisance, and laws were passed against them, but without the 
effect of putting them down. Horace here warns a friend, whom he 
calls Leuconoe, not to give heed to them. 

1. Quaesieris. Gr. 488. II. A. & S. 260, R. 6. So Sapias, 
etc, vv. 6, 7. On scire nefas, cf. C. III. 29. 29-32. — 2. For nee 
with the imperative (or subjunctive = imperative) cf. C. I. 9. 15; C. 
III. 29, 6, etc. Babylonios numeros = the calculations of the 
Chaldaeans. — 3. Ut = quanto. — 4. Hiemes = annos. — 6, 7. 
Spatio — reseces ; i. e. cut down far-reaching hopes and confine 
them within a narrow compass. Cf. C. I. 4. 15. — 8. Carpe diem 
= seize the (present) day. 

ODE XII. — The object of this Ode is to celebrate the popular 
divinities and heroes of Rome ; but the design is so worked out as to 
draw the chief attention to Augustus. 

1. This opening is taken from the beginning of the second Olym- 
pic Ode of Pindar : — 

riva Oebv, rLv ijpwa, rira 8' avSpa <e\aS^croiJ.ev ; 

2. Celebrare. See on C. I. I. 8. Horace invokes the Muses with- 
out much discrimination ; but Clio is not improperly invoked here, 
as the Muse of history. Calliope, the Epic Muse, is invoked C. III. 
4. 2 ; Melpomene, the tragic, is asked for a dirge, I. 24. 3, and is 
invoked by Horace as his patroness in C. IV. 3 ; Euterpe and Po- 
lymnia, the proper lyric Muses, occur C. I. 1. 33. — 3, 4. Jocosa 
imago = the sportive echo. — 5, 6. Helicon. See on Ov. M. II. 
219. Pindo. Ov. M. II. 225. Haemo. Virg. G. I. 492 ; II. 488, 
where the same epithet is used. — 7 - 10. Temere = involuntarily, 
not knowing why. See on Ov. M. XI. 1. Calliope was the mother 
of Orpheus. Cf. Virg. E. IV. 55-57. —11, 12. Auritas = listen- 
ing, attentive. Ducere. See on C. I. 1. 18. — 13 - 16. Parentis 
= Jupiter. Cf. Virg. E. III. 60; A. I. 229, 230. Variis horis = 
the changing seasons. Mundum = the sky ; as in Virg. G. 1. 240. 
— 17-20. Unde = from whom. Cf. C. I. 12, 17. Even Cicero 
uses it of persons. Nee — secundum. Cf. Milton: "for none I 
know, Second to me or like, equal much less " ; and again : " no fair 
to thine Equivalent or second." Cf. Virg. A. V. 320. Pallas is said 
to be next to Jupiter, not absolutely, but among those qui generantur 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE XII. 667 

ipso, and only these are mentioned. — 21 - 24. Proeliis refers to the 
war of Bacchus with the giants, and his Indian conquest. See on 
Ov. M. IV. 605. Te. Gr. 371. 3. 1). A. & S. 232 (2) and N. 1. 
Liber. See on Ov. M. III. 636. Virgo = Diana. Cf. the Greek 
Koprj, ndpOevos- Homer calls her OrjpoKTovos, the slayer of wild 
beasts. So Apollo is £<r]fi6\os, the far-shooter, and kXvtoto^os, 
famed with the bow. — 25 - 28. Alciden = Hercules, who was the 
reputed grandson of Alcaeus. Pueros ; i. e. the Dioscuri, Castor 
and Pollux, the sons of Jupiter and Leda. See on C. I. 3. 2. Fug- 
nis ; ablative from pugnus. Pollux was a pugilist ; 7ru£ dyadov, as 
Homer says, of which pugnis nobilem is a translation. Castor was 
LTTTTobapLov, the horse-tamer. For syntax of superare, see on C. I. 1. 
18. Simul; sc. ac. Alba Stella = lucida sidera, C. I. 3. 2. — 31. 
Voluere ; i. e. the Dioscuri. Ponto. Dillenb. says that the poets 
use the dative with reawibere, as with inciwibere in prose. Cf. Virg. 
G. I. 401. — 34-36. Pompili = Numa Pompilius. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 
810. Tarquini. It has been much disputed whether this refers to 
Tarquinius Priscus or Superbus. Ritter, Dillenburger, and others 
make it the latter ; Macleane favors the former, taking superb os in 
a good sense (= splendidos) as in C. I. 35. 3. Catonis = M. Cato 
Uticensis, who put himself to death rather than fall into the hands of 
Julius Caesar. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 841. On memorem, see Gr. 525. 

A. & S. 265. The order is, dubito (utrum) prius post hos memorem 
Romulum, an quietum Pompili regnum, etc. — 37 - 44. In Scauros 
the plural is used for the singular, and M. Aemilius Scaurus is meant, 
who was consul B. C. 115. The story of M. Atilius Regulus, who 
as consul commanded the Roman army in the first Punic war, and 
was taken by the Carthaginians, is told in C. III. 5. L. Aemilius 
Paullus commanded with Varro, his colleague in the consulship, at 
the battle of Cannae, when the Romans were defeated by Hannibal, 
and Paullus lost his life by refusing to fly when he might have done 
so. C. Fabricius Luscinus (cf. Virg. A. VI. 844) was consul and 
commanded in the war with Pyrrhus B. C. 278, three years after 
which M. Curius Dentatus was consul and commander in the same 
war. Both of these consuls were celebrated for the simplicity of their 
habits, and for rejecting the bribes of the Samnites. The older Ro- 
mans wore their hair and beards long. L. Furius Camillus is he who 
was said to have forced the Gauls to raise the siege of the Capitol, 

B. C. 390. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 825. Insigni Camena = in lofty song. 
Saeva does not necessarily bear a bad sense, nor is it so used in C. 
III. 16. 16. Apto cum lare = with a suitable house ; i. e. of a size 
proportionate to the small ancestral farm. The lar, or household 
god is put for the house. See on Virg. A. V. 744 and cf. the similar 
use of penates. — 45-48. Occulto . . . aevo = " in the impercep- 



668 NOTES ON HORACE. 

tible lapse of time." Marcelli = M. Claudius Marcellus, who took 
Syracuse in the second Punic war, B. C. 212. His name stands also 
for his descendants, and particularly the young Marcellus, who mar- 
ried Julia, the daughter of Augustus, B. C. 25, and died in less than 
two years after. Cf. Virg. VI. 855 foil. The star of Julius Caesar 
and the lesser lights of that family are meant by what follows. At 
the death of Caesar, a comet is said to have appeared, which was 
supposed to be his spirit translated to the skies. — 51, 52. Tu — 
regnes = Thou shalt reign, with Caesar thy vicegerent (on earth). — 
53 - 56. Parthos. See on C. I. 2. 22. Latio is put for the Ro- 
man Empire. Justo = legitimate, complete. Orae. Gr. 386. 

A. & S. 224. The Seres and Indi are not much distinguished by 
Horace, and, when he is speaking of the East, their names are used 
indefinitely for the farthest nations known to the Romans in that di- 
rection. They are often, as here, associated with the Parthians. Cf. 
Virg. G. II. 121. — 59, 60. Parum castis =pollutis, polluted, pro- 
faned. Lucis. See on terris, C. I. 2. 1. Cf. C. I. 3. 40. 

ODE XIV. — During the troubles in Mitylene, his native city, 
Alcaeus wrote an Ode, of which this seems to be a close imitation. 
It was written most probably during the civil wars, that is, between 

B. C. 41 and 30 (when Horace returned to Rome). The state is 
likened to a ship drifting out to sea with its rigging crippled, and in 
danger of destruction. 

4. Remigio. Gr. 393. 5. 3). A. & S. 250. 2 (1). — 5. Africo. 
See on C. I. 1. 15. — 6. Gemant. See on Adspice ut, Virg. E. V. 6. 
So possmt. Cf. C. I. 9. 1. Sine funibus == without rigging. Some 
make it == without girding-ropes ; referring to Acts xxvii. 16. — 
7, 8. Carinae; poetic plural. Cf. C. I. 35. 7 and see on trabe, C. I. 
1. 13. Imperiosius = too violent. Gr. 441. 1. A. & S. 122, R. 3. — 
10. Di. There was usually a niche in the stern of a ship where the 
image of the tutelary god was kept. Pressa = oppressa. Voces = 
you may invoke. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264. 1. — 11-13. The best 
ship timber came from Pontus. See on Virg. G. I. 58. Pinus is in 
apposition with the subject of jactes, and nobilis agrees with 
silvae. — 14-16. Pictis. Cf. Virg. A. V. 663. Nisi — ludi- 
brium = if you are not fated to be the sport of the winds. Gr. 508 
and 2. A. & S. 261, R. 1. — 17-20. Taking the Ode as an ad- 
dress to the state, we can only understand Horace to mean, that 
while he was attached to Brutus, or before he had received pardon, 
he had no other feelings than fear for his own safety and disgust with 
the state of the country ; but now, under Augustus, he watches its 
fate with the affection and anxiety of a friend. The order is, ( Tu) 
quae nuper eras mihi sollicitum taedium (et quae) nunc (es) desideriwn 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE XXII. 669 

curaque non levis, vites aequora interfusa (inter) nitentes Cycladas. 
Nitentes = shining ; as cliffs do in the sun. The Cyclades abound 
in white marble. See on Virg. A. III. 127. 

ODE XVI. — Horace appears to have written some severe verses 
against some woman or other, and this seems to be written in mock 
penitence for that offence. He represents the evils of anger, and 
begs her to destroy his verses and forgive him. 

2, 3. Quern — iambis = Put what end you will to those abusive 
verses. On pones see Gr. 470. 1. A. & S. 259. 4. Flamma. Gr. 
414. 4. A. & S. 247. 3. — 3. Hadriano. Cf. C. I. 3. 15. — 5 - 8. 
Dindymene= Cybele, the mother of the gods; so called from 
Mount Dindymus, in Galatia, where she had a temple. Her priests 
were called Galli (from this locality) and Corybantes. Her rites were 
celebrated by these priests in a very mad fashion, as were those of 
Bacchus. Cf. Virg. A. III. in and Ov. M. XI. 16. Sacerdotum 
limits both mentem and incola. For a description of the Pythian 
possession, or inspiration, see Virg. A. VI. 77 foil. On the Bacchic 
frenzy cf. Virg. A. IV. 301 foil, and Ov. M. XI. 3 foil. Acuta gem- 
inant aera = redouble the blows on the shrill brass ; i. e. the 
cymbals. Non sic = non tanto cum impetu, — 9-12. Noricus. 
The best steel for sword-blades came from Noricum, on the Danube. 
Ruens = rushing down, descending. — 13 - 16. This story is not 
found elsewhere. It would seem to be a merry invention of Horace, 
to add to the ironical extravagance of the poem. Principi limo = 
the primary clay ; i. e. the raw material with which he began. — 17 - 
20. Irae — stravere ; referring to the quarrel between Atreus and 
Thyestes which ruined the royal house of the Pelopidae. Et — peri- 
rent = and has ever been the final cause of the fall of lofty cities. 
Urbibus. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 and N. Stetere, express- 
ing " a fixed fact," is more forcible than fuere would be. — 22. Com- 
pesce mentem = be appeased. — 23. Celeres iambos = hasty 
iambics. Cf. A. P. 251. — 25. Mitibus. Gr. 416. 2. A. & S. 252, 
R. 5. — 26 - 28. Fias. Gr. 503. I. ; 505. A. & S. 263. 2. So red- 
das. — Opprobriis. Gr. 431. A. & S. 257. 

ODE XXII. — Aristius Fuscus was an intimate friend of Horace. 
See S. I. 9. 61 and E. I. 10. He is said to have been a grammarian 
and a writer of plays. The subject of the Ode is the security and 
happiness of the upright man. He is safe wherever he may go ; 
even the wild beasts will not harm him. 

1, 2. Integer vitae. Gr. 399 and 3. 4). A. & S. 213 and R. 1 
(a). So amens animi, Virg. A. IV. 203. Cf. Milton : " from sin 
and blame entire.'''' Mauris = Mauritanicis. The Mauritanians 



670 NOTES ON HORACE. 

were famous for their skill in the use of the javelin. On jaculis 
see Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 250. 2 (2). — 5-8. Syrtes; i. e. along 
the burning coast bordering on the Syrtes. See on Virg. A. I. 146 ; 
IV. 41. Cf. C. I. 31. 5. Caucasum. See on Virg. G. II. 440; 
A. IV. 367. Fabulosus = famed in fable ; not, fabulous. Hydas- 
pes ; one of the tributaries of the Indus, now the Behut, or the Je- 
lum, or (Macleane) the Vitasta. — 10, 11. Canto. Gr. 467. 4. 
A. & S. 259 (1) (c). Curis expeditis = with cares forgotten. Some 
read curis expedites, free from care. — 13 - 16. Portentum = mon- 
ster. Daunias (sc. terra) = Daunia ; the ancient name of north- 
ern Apulia, derived from Daunus, a native king, the father-in-law of 
Diomed. Militaris = famed for its soldiers. Aesculetis ; a word 
not found elsewhere. The Apulian slopes of the Apennines were 
thickly wooded. Jubae tellus. Juba, the son of Hiempsal, was 
king of Numidia. His son, by favor of Augustus, was restored to 
that kingdom, but afterwards received in exchange for it Mauritania 
and parts of Gaetulia. It is uncertain which of the two kings Hor- 
ace had in mind, or whether he means generally the northern parts 
of Africa, which were famous for lions. — 17-20. Pone. Gr. 535. 
2. Pigris = torpid, unfruitful. Juppiter. See on C. I. 1. 25. 
Urget = broods heavily over. — 21, 22. These verses describe the 
torrid zone, as vv. 17-20, the frigid. Domibus negata = unin- 
habitable ; literally, denied to dwellings. — 24. Dulce. Gr. 335. 4. 
1). A. & S. 205, R. 10. 

ODE XXIV. — Quinctilius Varus was born at Cremona, and was 
a neighbor and friend of Virgil, through whom it is probable Horace 
made his acquaintance. He is referred to in the Ars Poetica, v. 438 
foil., as a discerning critic. He died young, B. C. 24, and this Ode 
is intended to console Virgil for the loss of his friend. 

1-3. Desiderio ; dative, instead of the genitive. Gr. 398. 5. 
A. & S. 211, R. 5 and N. Capitis. The Greek and Latin poets 
use the head for the whole person, especially in expressing affection. 
Melpomene. See on C. I. 12. 2. — 5. Ergo = can it be that? — 
7,8. Cf. C. S. 57 foil. — 9. Bonis. Gr. 391. A. & S. 222. 3, R. 1 
and {c). So nulli and tibi. — 11, 12. Tu— deos = It is vain, 
alas ! that with pious prayers thou dost ask the gods to restore 
Quinctilius, whom thou didst intrust to their keeping, but not on 
these terms (i. e. that they should take him away). — 13. Quodsi. 
Horace never uses sin, which Virgil uses as often and in the same 
way as Horace uses quodsi = but if. Orpheo. See on C. I. 12. 8. 
Cf. Ov. M. XI. 2, 92. — 15 - 18. Imagini = shade ; the unsubstan- 
tial body in which the soul dwelt after death. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 292 
foil. Virga. See on C. I. 10. 18. Non — recludere = not in- 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE XXVI. 67 1 

dulgent enough to our prayers to undo the door of fate ; i. e. the 
door of Hades when Fate has closed it. Precibus is the dative, 
depending either on lenis (Ritter) or on rechcdere. Nigro = dark, 
gloomy ; like everything in the lower world. Even Proserpina is 
called fzirva in C. II. 13. 21. See on Ov. M. V. 404. Gregi = ad? 
gregem. Gr. 384. 2. 1). A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. —19, 20. Durum : 
— nefas = 't is hard to bear ; but patience makes that lighter which 
no power can change. Donatus says that Virgil was much in the 
habit of commending this virtue of patience, saying that the hardest 
fortunes might be overcome by a wise endurance of them. Cf. Virg. 
A. V. 710. Therefore, says Fabricius, Horace consoles Virgil with 
his own philosophy. 

ODE XXVI. — This Ode is an invocation of the Muse, praying 
ber to do honor to L. Aelius Lamia, a Roman of noble family, who 
distinguished himself in the war with the Cantabri. It would ap- 
pear that, at the time it was written, the affairs of the Parthians were 
occupying a good deal of attention at Rome, since Horace speaks of 
himself as the only one who gave no heed to them. The circum- 
stances that may be supposed to be referred to are to be gathered 
from the following account. In the year B. C. 30, Phraates (Arsaces 
XV.) being on the Parthian throne, and having by his cruelties made 
himself obnoxious to his subjects, Tiridates, likewise one of the fam- 
ily of Arsacidae, was set up as a rival to Phraates, but was defeated 
in his attempt to dethrone him, and fled for protection to Augustus, 
who was then in Syria, after the death of M. Antonius. Shortly 
afterwards, however, the Parthians succeeded in getting rid of their 
king, and Tiridates was called to the throne. In B. C. 25, Phraates, 
having obtained assistance from the Scythians, returned and recov- 
ered his kingdom ; and Tiridates fled to Augustus once more for pro- 
tection. He was then in Spain. The assembling of the Scythian 
force and the alarm of Tiridates are evidently referred to here, and 
the two seem to be associated. It is natural to infer, therefore, that 
it was just before Tiridates fled from his kingdom, in B. C. 25, that 
the Ode was composed. 

1. Cf. C. III. 4. 25. — 2. Mare Creticum = the Cretan Sea ; ly- 
ing north of Crete, here put for the sea in general. See on C.I. 
1. 13. — 3 - 5. Portare. Gr. 553. V. A. & S. 274, R. 7 (d). Cf. C. I. 
1.8. Quia = queis = qitibus. Gr. 388. 3. A. & S. 225. II. Some 
make it nominative with rex. Arcto. See on Virg. G. I. 246 and 
Ov. M. II. 129, 171. Tiridaten. Cf. Virg. G. II. 496.-6. Inte- 
gris = pure. — 9. Pimplea = Muse ; from Pimplea, a hill and 
fountain in Thrace, sacred to the Muses. — 10, 11. Fidibus novis 
= lyric strains new (to the Romans). Cf. C. III. 30. 13. See also 
C. I. 1. 34 and note. 



672 NOTES ON HORACE. 

ODE XXXI. — In A. U. C. 726, B. C. 28, Augustus dedicated a 
temple with a library attached, which he had built in honor of 
Apollo, on the Palatine Hill, to commemorate his victory at Actium. 
After the ceremonies of the day of dedication were over, we may 
suppose Horace putting in his own claim to the god's favor in this 
Ode, in which he represents himself as offering a libation (whether in 
private or at the temple is uncertain), and asking for that which, ac- 
cording to Juvenal (X. 356), should be the end of all prayer, mens 
sana in corpore sano. 

1. Dedicatum. This word is applied to the god as well as to his 
temple. — 2. Novum. New wine was used in libations. — 4-8. 
Sardinia, like Sicily, was famed for its fertility. Feraces is properly 
applied to the soil ; here to the crop, and = abundant. Some read 
opimas . . . feracis. Calabria, in Southern Italy, was celebrated for 
its pastures. Ebur Indicum. Cf. Virg. G. I. 57 and Ov. M. X. 
167. Liris. This river, now called Garigliano, took its rise in the 
country of the Aequi, and, passing through the richest part of La- 
tium, emptied itself below Minturnae into the sea. The upper part 
of the stream is much broken by waterfalls. Horace's description 
applies only to the lower part, where, having left the Apennines, it 
flows quietly through Latium. — 9-12. Premant. Cf. Virg. G. I. 
157. Calena is transferred from the vine to the knife. Cf. Sabina, 
C. I. 9. 7. Cales was in Campania, and produced excellent wine. 
Vitem is governed by both premant and dedit. Vina — merce = 
wine taken in exchange for Syrian goods ; which includes all the 
costly merchandise of the East, exported through the Syrian sea- 
ports. A mercator was a dealer in wares who generally sailed or 
travelled into foreign parts. The mercatores were an enterprising 
class, and penetrated into barbarous and distant countries and dan- 
gerous seas. The mention of the Atlantic is a little out of place, 
immediately after Syra merce; but, as usual, Horace writes gener- 
ally, and does not aim at strict accuracy. Aequor Atlanticum suited 
his verse. The travelling merchants are often referred to by Hor- 
ace. See C. I. 1. 15 ; C. III. 24. 40; S. I. 1. 6 ; E. I. 16. 71, and 
elsewhere. — 15 - 20. Leves = light ; i. e. easy of digestion. Cf. 
Ep. 2. 58. Frui — mente. The order is, Precor, Lato'e (ut), dones 
mihi, et valido et integra cum mente, frui paratis. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 
262, R. 4. Latoe (Aar<5e) ; i. e. son of Latona. Nee — carentem 
= et non, etc. This is the second part of the petition, and = and to 
lead no degenerate old age, nor devoid of the lyre. Frui and degere 
are the direct objects of dones ; a poetical construction. - 

ODE XXXIV. — If Horace had any serious meaning in this 
Ode, — and he probably had, — he wrote it under some impulse of 






ODES. BOOK I. ODE XXXV. 673 

conscience, which told him that he had been too careless of that 
sovereign power which governs all things. He seems to express 
more than mere poetical feeling ; and the power acknowledged is not 
the conventional 'Fortune of the next Ode, but the Supreme Being, 
who declares his existence by the voice of conscience, through sud- 
den impressions and startling signs, such as, under some, form or 
other, we may believe Horace was struck with. 

2. Insanientis sapientiae = a mad philosophy ; the Greek 
ao<f)La acro(f)os. It is an example of oxymoron, the rhetorical figure 
which " unites words of contrary significations, thus producing a 
seeming contradiction." — 3. Consultus = versed in, learned in. — 
4. Iterare = retrace, return to. — 5 - 8. Diespiter = Jupiter. It 
is said to be compounded of dies, an old form for diet, and pater. 
Purum ; sc. coelum. See on Virg. G. I. 487. Volucrem. See on 
dirae, C. I. 2. i.— 10, 11. Taenari. See on Ov. M. X. 13. At- 
lanteus finis. Atlas was supposed to be the boundary of the world 
in that direction. See on Virg. A. IV. 247. — 12-16. Valet — 
rautare. Cf. Luke i. 52, Psalms lxxv. 6, 7, etc. For the construc- 
tion, see on C. I. 16. 25. Valere with the infinitive is not used by 
prose writers till after the Augustan age. Apicem; properly the 
tuft on the top of the Flamen's cap, but applied to the cap itself, and 
figuratively, as here, to the royal crown. Stridore = whirring (of 
her wings). Sustulit. Gr. 471. 3. On posuisse cf. collegisse, C. I. 
1. 4 and note. 

ODE XXXV. — When Augustus was meditating an expedition 
against the Britons, and another for the East (A. U. C. 727, B. C. 27), 
Horace commended him to the care of Fortune the Preserver, to 
whom this Ode is addressed. The goddess Fortuna, under different 
characters, had many temples at Rome ; but her worship was most 
solemnly maintained, when Horace wrote, at Praeneste and at Antium, 
where she had an oracle, and was worshipped under a double form 
as prospera and adversa. She was represented on Roman coins with 
a double ship's rudder in one hand and a cornucopiae in the other, 
which may furnish a clew to the allusions in the second stanza. There 
are passages which may have been drawn from paintings in the tem- 
ple at Antium. 

1. Antium was a maritime town of Latium, now Porto d' Anzo. 
— 2-4. Praesens —potens, as often. It expresses the presence of 
the gods as shown by their power. Cf. Psalms xlvi. 1. See Ov. M. III. 
658. There is no other instance of praesens with an infinitive. See 
on C. I. 1. 18. Funeribus is ablative of means, used with vertere 
after the analogy of mutare. See on C. I. 16. 23, and cf. A. P. 226, 
the only other instance of the construction. — 6-8. Ruris limits 

43 



674 NOTES ON HORACE. 

colonus, which means the lessee of a farm, in distinction from domi- 
nus, the owner. Bithyna carina = a vessel built of the timber of 
Bithynia, in Asia Minor. See on C. I. i. 13. Carpathium pelagus ; 
the part of the Mediterranean around the island Carpathus, between 
Rhodes and Crete. — 9-12. Dacus. Dacia was north of the Dan- 
ube, and included the modern Transylvania, Wallachia, Moldavia, 
and part of Hungary. Profugi Scythae — the roving (or nomadic) 
Scythians ; the most northern tribes known to the ancients. Latium 
ferox. Cf. C. III. 3. 44. Matres. Orelli quotes Judges v. 28. 
Purpurei = ] purpurati. — 14-16. Columnam. What Horace 
means is, that tyrants are afraid lest Fortune should overthrow their 
power, represented figuratively by a standing column. Ad arma. 
The repetition of these words suggests the cry of the populus fre- 
quens, the thronging people. Cessantes = the peaceably disposed. 
— 17 - 20. The several things that Necessity is here represented as 
holding are emblems of tenacity and fixedness of purpose, — the nail, 
the clamp, and the molten lead : they have nothing to do with tor- 
ture, as many have supposed. Anteit is here a dissyllable. Clavos 
trabales ; nails of the largest sort, for fastening beams in large 
houses. There is one in the Museum of the quondam Grand Duke 
of Tuscany, at Florence, weighing fifty pounds, made of bronze. 
Clavi trabales had passed into a proverb with the Romans. Compare 
Cicero (in Verr. Act. II. 5. 21) : ut hoc benejicutm, quemadmodum 
dicitur, trabali clavo figeret. Cuneos ; also nails wedge-shaped. On 
the nails of Fate, see C. III. 24. 7. Severus = unyielding. — 21 - 
28. The picture in these lines, apart from the allegory, is that of a 
rich man in adversity, going forth from his home with hope in his 
breast, and accompanied by a few faithful friends, but deserted by 
those who only cared for his wealth. In the person of Fortune, there- 
fore, is represented the man who is suffering from her reverses ; and 
in that of Fidelity, the small (rara) company of his true friends. 
Fortune is represented in the garments of mourning (mutata veste), 
and Fides in a white veil, emblematic of her purity. With such a 
veil on their heads men offered sacrifice to her. She is called by 
Virgil (A. I. 292) Cana Fides, but there it probably means "aged." 
Nee — abnegat (sc. se) — nor refuses herself for thy companion. 
Ferre — dolosi = too faithless to bear the yoke with him ; i. e. to 
share his adversity. Dolosi is perhaps = crafty, worldly-wise. — 29 - 32. 
See Introduction. Britannos. Cf. Virg. E. I. 67. Examen = levy ; 
a metaphor taken from the swarming of bees. — 33 - 36. Pudet ; sc. 
nos. Gr. 410. III. A. & S. 229, R. 6. Dura aetas = a hardened 
generation. Nefasti. Gr. 396. 2. 3) (3). A. & S. 212, R. 3. Unde 
== from what ? — 38 - 40. O — ferrum = O forge anew the blunted 
sword for the Scythian and the Arab ! Diffingere is a word found in 



ODES. BOOK I. ODE XXXVII. 675 

no author but Horace, who uses it here and in C. III. 29. 47. The 
Massagetae are said by Herodotus (I. 204) to have inhabited the 
great plain east of the Caspian ; but the Romans had no distinct 
knowledge of them, and the name is used for the unknown regions 
of Northern Asia, like the name of the Scythians. 

ODE XXXVII. — The occasion that gave rise to this Ode, and 
the time therefore of its composition, are sufficiently clear. Intelli- 
gence of the deaths of M. Antonius and Cleopatra was brought to 
Rome in the autumn of B. C. 30, and on this occasion Horace wrote 
the following Ode, which is directed chiefly against Cleopatra. 

2-4. Saliaribus. A Saliaric banquet is a rich banquet, fit for the 
Salii, the priests of Mars. The feasts of the Pontifices were proverbial 
for profusion. On great occasions a banquet was set out, in place of a 
sacrifice, and the images of the gods were placed on couches, as if to 
partake of it. This was called a lectisternium. The imperfect erat 
seems to mean that this was the time the Fates had intended for such 
festivities. The Greeks used the imperfect *XP*\ V m tne same wav - 
— 5-8. Antehac is a dissyllable. Cf. C. I. 35. 17. Nefas ; sc. 
erat. Caecubum = the Caecuban wine ; here put for choice wines 
in general. Cellis. The cella was, properly speaking, a chamber, 
partly above and partly under ground, in which the dolia were kept. 
That in which the amphorae were stored was called apotheca, and was 
in the upper part of the house : hence the terms depromere, deripere, 
descendere. Capitolio = urbi. See C. III. 3. 42 ; III. 30. 8. De- 
mentes. Gr. 704. III. A. & S. 323. 3. Cf. Virg. A. II. 576 : scel- 
eratas poenas. Imperio is used for the sovereign power of Rome, as 
in C. III. 5. 4 —10, 11. Virorum is ironical. Quidlibet — spe- 
rare = wild enough to expect anything. See on perpeti, C. I. 1. 18. 
So tractare, v. 27. Impotens here expresses want of self-control. — 
12-15. Cleopatra's fleet escaped from the battle of Actium, but M. 
Antonius saved no more than his own ship, in which he fled to Egypt. 
On lymphatam, see note on Ov. M. XI. 3. Mareotic wine came 
from the shores of Lake Mareotis, near Alexandria. Cleopatra's fleet 
fled from Actium, before a blow was struck, under the influence of a 
panic ; but Horace chooses to say it was a verus timor. The histori- 
cal facts are not accurately represented in this Ode. Though it is 
said that Cleopatra meditated a descent upon Italy, if she had been 
successful at Actium, she fled from that place to Egypt, and never 
went near Italy, whither Augustus returned after the battle ; and it 
was not till the next year, A. U. C. 724, that he went to Alexandria, 
and the deaths of M. Antonius and Cleopatra occurred. — 20. Hae- 
moniae = Thessaly, of which it was the ancient name. — 21. Quae. 
Gr. 445. 5. A. & S. 206 (11). — 23, 24. Latentes reparavit oraa 



676 NOTES ON HORACE. 

= (literally) took in exchange for her own kingdom shores out of the 
sight of men. Cf. C. I. 31. 12. It is said that Cleopatra contem- 
plated quitting Egypt, to escape from Augustus, and that she trans- 
ported vessels across the desert to the Red Sea; but they were 
destroyed by the Arabs, and she abandoned her design. — 25. Ja- 
centem is to be taken figuratively, not literally. — 26-29. Asperas 
= venomous. Atrum = deadly. Corpore ; instrumental ablative. 
Deliberata — ferocior = growing bolder when she had resolved 
to die. — 30 - 32. Liburnis ; sc. navibus. These were light ships, 
taking their name from the Liburni, a piratical tribe on the Illyrian 
coast. Augustus employed them in his expeditions against Sex. 
Pompeius, and they were of great service at Actium. Invidens = 
disdaining. Privata. Gr. 547. A. & S. 271, N. 5. Triumpho. 
Gr. 384. 2. 1). A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. 

ODE XXXVIII. — This little Ode is either a translation or an 
imitation of the Greek, probably the latter. 

1. Persicos. The luxury of the Persians was proverbial. Appa- 
ratus is a rare word in poetry. — 2. Philyra was the Greek name 
of the linden-tree, the thin inner bark of which was used in making 
chaplets. — 3. Mitte. Gr. 552. 1. A. & S. 271, N. 3. — 5 - 8. Al- 
labores = that you labor to add. The word occurs in no other 
writer. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. Sedulus belongs to the 
subject of allabores. Arta = thick, close-leaved. 



THE ODES. Book II. 



ODE II. — This Ode on the moderate desire and use of wealth is 
dedicated to C. Sallustius Crispus, grand-nephew of the historian and 
inheritor of his property. 

1. Argento ; dative of possessor. Color = beauty, or lustre. — 
2-4. Lamnae ; for laminae = money. Nisi splendeat. The 
conclusion (apodosis) is implied in inimice. — 5-8. Proculeius. 
C. Proculeius is stated by the Scholiasts to have assisted his brothers, 
who had lost their property in the civil wars. Animi limits notus. 
Gr. 399. 3. 4). A. & S. 213, R. 1 {a). Metuente. Cf. Virg. G. I. 
246. — 9-12. Cf. Proverbs xvi. 32. Gadibus. Gades (Cadiz) was 
taken poetically for the western limit of the world. It was originally, 
like Carthage, a Phoenician settlement, of which there were many in 



ODES. BOOK II. ODE III. 677 

Spain, whence Horace says uterque Poenus, the Phoenicians in 
Africa and those in Hispania. Uni ; sc. tibi. — 17 - 23. Phraates was 
restored to the Parthian throne B. C. 25. It is called the throne of 
Cyrus, because the Parthians succeeded to the greater part of the em- 
pire founded by Cyrus the Great. See on C. I. 2. 22. Plebi. Gr. 
385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 3. The final syllable of beatorum is elided. 
Populumque — vocibus = and teaches men not to use wrong 
names for things. Tutum and propriam mean that the crown and 
the laurel are indisputably his by right. Oculo irretorto = with 
steady eye ; not with the sidelong glance of envy. 

ODE III. — The person to whom this Ode is addressed is generally 
supposed to be Q. Dellius, who, from being a follower, first of Dola- 
bella, and then of Brutus and Cassius, became a devoted adherent of 
M. Antonius, till shortly before the battle of Actium, when he quar- 
relled with Cleopatra and joined Augustus, who received him with 
favor. Dellius was called desultor bellorum civilium, in allusion to 
the desultor of the circus, who rode two horses at the same time. 
The subjects of the Ode are moderation, the enjoyment of the present 
moment, and the certainty of death. 

2. Non secus = as well as. Non seats ac is the usual phrase. — 
4. Moriture = who art doomed to die ; or, since you must die. The 
conditional clauses which follow depend on this word, not on memento 
servare. — 6. Remoto gramine = in a secluded grassy spot. — 
8. Interiore — Falerni = with old Falernian (wine). The cork of 
the amphora was stamped with the name of the consul in whose year 
it was filled, or a label with that inscription was fastened to the vessel, 
and the amphorae being placed in the apotheca as they were filled, the 
oldest would be the innermost. — 9. Quo = to what purpose ? The 
idea is : What were the shade and the cool stream given for, if not to 
be enjoyed ? Populus. The Greeks had two names for the pop- 
lar, — \evKT), which was white, and atyeipos, which was dark. Virgil 
calls the white bicolor. Amant, as in C. III. 16. 10, is used like the 
Greek (f)t\ov(n, are wont. — 11, 12. Quid — rivo = To what purpose 
does the flying stream struggle to haste down its winding channel ? 
The stream is represented as striving to hurry on, in spite of the ob- 
structions offered by its winding banks. — 14, 15. Flores ; for the 
garlands which' they wore at feasts. Res = circumstances, oppor- 
tunities ; or, as some give it, wealth. Sororum = the Fates. See 
on Ov. M. I. 256 and X. 31. — 17-20. Cf. C. II. 14. 31 foil. Horace 
uses lavit, not lavat, the usual prose form. Divitiis. Gr. 419. I. 
A. & S. 245. I. — 21 - 24. Inacho = Inachus, the earliest mythical 
king of Argos. Gr. 425. 3. 1). A. & S. 246, R. 2. The order is, 
Nil interest divesne natus ab Inacho, an pauper et de infima gente, sub 



678 NOTES ON HORACE. 

divo moreris, etc. ; i. e. it matters not whether rich and noble, or poor 
and of humble birth, etc. Gr. 526. II. A. & S. 265, R. 2. Vic- 
tinia — Orci = (since you must be) the victim of pitiless Pluto. 
Nil. Gr. 380 and 2. A. & S. 232 (3). — 25 - 28. Cogimur = we 
are driven (like sheep). Cf. Virg. E. III. 20. Urna. Cf. C. III. 
1. 16. The notion is that of Fate standing with an urn, into which 
every man's lot is cast. She shakes it, and he whose lot comes out 
must die. Ovid has imitated this passage, Met. X. 32. Cumbae ; 
i. e. Charon's boat. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 298 foil. The word is in the 
dative (= in cumbam) and is the form usually found in inscriptions 
for cymbae. 

ODE IX. — C. Valgius Rufus was a poet of much merit, and ap- 
pears to have been sad for the loss of a young slave, not of his son, 
as some critics have supposed. At a time of public rejoicing (prob- 
ably at the closing of the gates of Janus, B. C. 24) Valgius is called 
upon to cease from writing mournful verses on Mystes, and to turn 
his thoughts to the praises of Augustus. 

1-6. Nubibus. Gr. 422. 2. A. & S. 255, R. 3 {b). Inae- 
quales = varying, fitful. Macleane makes it = informes (rough), 
C. II. 10. 15. The table-lands of Armenia are intensely cold in win- 
ter, and covered with snow and ice. The summers are hot and dry. 
— 7 - 12. Gargani = of Garganus, an Apulian range terminating in 
the bold promontory of the same name. It is still covered with 
woods. Laborant. See on C. I. 9. 4. Mensas per omnes cor- 
responds to semper and usque above. Tu — ademptum = but thou 
art ever dwelling in doleful strains upon the loss of Mystes. Tibi. 
Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 1. Vespero surgente refers to Venus 
as the evening star and fugiente as the morning star. Dillenburger 
calls attention to the fact that Venus is not morning and evening star 
on the same day ; but, as he adds, non tenentur poetae certis immuta- 
bilibusque mathematicorum legibus. Longfellow, alluding to a similar 
poetic liberty in his " Occultation of Orion," says that his observa- 
tion is taken " from the hill of song, not that of science." — 13 - 16. 
Ter — functus = who had thrice completed the (usual) age of man. 
Cicero (de Senect. 10) says : Nestor tertiam jam aetatem ho?nin7im 
vivebat. But the length of an "age" cannot now be determined. 
Antilochus, the son of Nestor and friend of Achilles, was killed by 
Memnon. He was famed for his beauty and manliness, as well as for 
his filial piety. On the death of Troilus, see Virg. A. I. 474. — 
17-20. Mollium = weak, unmanly. Querelarum. Gr. 409. 4. 
A. & S. 220. 2. Cantemus. Gr. 488. II. A. & S. 260, R. 6. 
Rigidum Niphaten == ice-bound Niphates ; a mountain range east 
of the Tigris. — 21 - 24. Flumen = the Euphrates. It is the sub- 



ODES. BOOK II. ODE X. 679 

ject of volvere, which verb depends on cantemus. So equitare. 
Vertices = waves. Some read vortices, which is merely another 
form of the same word. Quintilian explains how vertex passed into 
its applied meanings, thus : " Vertex est contorta in se aqua, vel quic- 
quid aliud similiter vertitur. Inde propter flexum capillorum pars est 
summa capitis, et ex hoc quod est in montibus eminentissimum. Recte 
inquam dixeris haec omnia vertices ; proprie tamen, wide initium est." 
(VIII. 2.) Gelonos. This was one of the tribes on the north bank 
of the Danube. Intra praescriptum ; i. e. within limits that Cae- 
sar should prescribe them. 

ODE X. — Licinius Murena, or A. Terentius Varro Murena, as he 
was called after his adoption by A. Terentius Varro, was a man of 
restless and ambitious character, and finally paid the penalty of his 
rashness with his life. It is very probable that Horace wrote this 
Ode to his friend to warn him of the tendencies of his disposition, 
and to recommend to him the virtue of moderation. All else that we 
learn from Horace's poems respecting Murena is, that he was of the 
college of augurs, and that he had a house at Formiae, where he re- 
ceived Maecenas and his party on their way to Brundisium (S. I. 5. 
37 foil.). 

2-4. Procellas. Gr. 371. 3. 1). A. & S. 232 (2). Iniquum = 
perilous. — 5-8. Auream mediocritatem = the golden mean. 
Obsoleti = gone out of use ; hence, old, dilapidated. Invidenda 
aula = an envied palace ; perhaps, " the envy of a palace." Cf. C. 
III. 1. 45. — 9-12. Ingens, celsae, and summos are emphatic. 
It is the lofty pine, that is oftenest shaken by the winds, etc. Sum- 
mos = the highest ; not the tops, as some give it. Fulgura —ful- 
mina, as in Virg. G. I. 488. — 13 - 15. Sortem is the object of metuit 
and sperat. Informes. See on v. 3 of the preceding Ode. — 17 - 
20. Olim = by and by. The word being derived from the demon- 
strative pronoun ill-, of which the older form is 51-, or oil-, and which 
only indicates the remoter object, signifies some time more or less dis- 
tant either in the past or future. So likewise quondam, which is akin 
to quum, an adverb relating to all parts of time, signifies any time not 
present ; here = at times. Cf. Virg. A. II. 367. Apollo is almost 
always represented with a bow and arrows, or a lyre, or both. Homer 
has many epithets describing him with his bow. The ancients be- 
lieved him to be the punisher of the wicked and the author of all 
sudden deaths among men, as Diana (Artemis) was among women. 
— 22. Appare = show thyself. Idem. Gr. 451. 3. A. & S. 207, 
R. 27 (a). Cf. v. 16. 

ODE XIII. — The accident referred to in this Ode probably hap- 



680 NOTES ON HORACE. 

pened when Horace was about forty years old, B. C. 25 or 26. A 
year afterwards we find him celebrating the anniversary of his escape 
with a sacrifice to Liber (C. III. 8. 6), and in the 17th Ode of this book 
(v. 32) he speaks of offering a lamb to Faunus for his preservation. 

The latter part of the Ode is a remarkable instance of Horace's 
way of digressing into subjects only remotely connected with his 
principal theme. In speaking of his escape, he is led into a descrip- 
tion of the company he should have been brought into, if he had been 
sent so suddenly to Hades, dwelling particularly on Alcaeus and Sap- 
pho, and the power of their music over the spirits of the dead. 

1-4. Nefasto. A dies nefastus was properly one on which, the 
day being dedicated to religion, it was not lawful for the praetor to 
hold his court. Ovid thus defines dies fasti and nefasti (Fast. I. 47) : — 
I lie nefastus erit per quern tria verba siletitttr ; 
Fastus erit per quem lege licebit agi ; 

where the three words alluded to are said to be do, dico, addico, all of 
them familiar and of common occurrence in Roman civil procedure. 
Hence the name, which is compounded of ne and fari. And because 
no secular work but what was necessary could prosper on the days 
called nefasti, all unlucky days came to bear that name, as here ; and 
the word was thence applied to express all that was bad, as C. I. 35. 
35. The words may be rendered : he not only planted thee on an 
evil day (whoever it was that first planted thee), but with impious 
hand reared thee. The pagus was Mandela, in a valley of the Sabine 
hills, where Horace had his farm. — 5-12. Crediderim. Gr. 486. 
3. A. & S. 260, R. 4. Fregisse cervicem is the ordinary phrase 
for strangulation. The force of penetralia is, that in the inner part 
of the house the images of the Penates and the hearth of Vesta were 
placed, where, if anywhere, the person of a guest should be sacred. 
Colchica ; an allusion to the poisons of the Colchian sorceress, 
Medea. Tractavit, which is a word of very wide application, may 
take both venena and nefas as objects. It is not necessary to call 
it a zeugma. Caducum signifies falling, fallen, or ready to fall, but 
generally the last, as here. Cf. C. III. 4. 44 and Virg. A. VI. 481. — 
13 - 16. Quid — horas = man is never sufficiently careful from 
hour to hour in regard to the dangers he should avoid ; or, as Martin 
gives it : " No mortal due provision makes 'Gainst ills which any hour 
may fall." Bosporum. The form of the Greek fiovs iropos re- 
quires that the name should be written thus, and not Bosphontm, as 
it is often spelt. See on procellas, C. II. 10. 2. The Phoenicians were 
proverbial as sailors, and the name is so used here. — 17-19. Sagit- 
tas — Parthi ; referring to the deadly aim with which the Parthians, 
even when fleeing, shot their arrows. The defeat of Crassus by the 
Parthians, B. C. 55, and of M. Antonius, B. C. 36, made a deep and last- 



ODES. BOOK II. ODE XIII. 68 1 

ing impression on the Romans. Catenas et Italum robur = the 
bonds and the prowess of the Roman. Some critics understand robur 
— Tidlianum robur, the famous prison in Rome, described by Sallust 
(Catil. 55), and mentioned by Livy, Tacitus, Festus, etal. It is not easy 
to decide between the renderings, but " the strength of Italy " seems 
the simpler. Among the things which the Roman soldier carried to 
battle with him (an axe, a saw, etc.) was a chain to secure any prisoner 
he might take. To this Horace perhaps refers in catenas. Cf. C. III. 
8. 22. —21-28. Furvae. See on C. I. 24. 18 and cf. Virg. VI. 134. 
Sedesque — piorum. According to the notions of the ancient 
poets, the great divisions of Orcus were three : 1st, Erebus, the region 
of darkness and mourning, but not of torment, which lay on the 
banks of the Styx, and extended thence over a considerable tract 
towards the other two ; 2d, Tartarus, the place of punishment ; and 
3d, Elysium, the place of happiness. In the first of these Minos pre- 
sided, in the second, Rhadamanthus, and in the third, Aeacus. In 
the Homeric times Elysium was upon earth in the fiaKapav vrjaoi, 
"the Islands of the Blest." Aeoliis — popularibus = Sappho 
complaining on the Aeolian lyre of the maidens of her country. Some 
of Sappho's poetry, of which fragments remain, is addressed to her 
young female friends, and complains with jealousy of their transfer- 
ring their affections to others. Horace alludes to this. The Aeolians 
settled in Lesbos, Sappho's native island (C. I. 1. 34), wherefore her 
lyre is called Aeolian. Plenius = in grander strains. Alcaeus took 
an active part in the civil struggles in Mitylene, and was banished by 
the victorious party. He could sing, therefore, from experience, of 
the perils of the sea, and of exile, and of war. — 29 -32. Utrum- 
que ; i. e. Sappho and Alcaeus. Mirantur . . . dicere = mirantur 
dicentem ; a Grecism. Magis modifies bibit. Densum humeris 
= crowded together. On bibit aure, cf. Virg. A. IV. 359 and 661. 
Shakespeare (Othello) : " with greedy ear devoured up my dis- 
course." Pope also : " Such the pleased ear will drink with silent 
joy." Lincoln quotes Wordsworth: — "his spirit drank the spec- 
tacle." It would be easy to multiply examples of this poetical illus- 
tration of one of the five senses by another. — 33-36. Carmini- 
bus ; ablative of cause. Belua = Cerberus ; usually described as 
having three heads (Virg. A. VI. 421 ; Ov. M. X. 65, etc.), but some- 
times with fifty, sometimes a hundred. Eumenidum. See Ov. M. 
X. 45, 46 and note. — 37 - 40. Quin et = moreover ; nay, even. 
Qui)i (= qui ue) is strictly an interrogative, and = why not ? but 
like the Greek ovkovv, it is used in direct affirmations, as here and 
often. Prometheus. See on C. I. 3. 27. Pelopis parens = Tan- 
talus. See on Ov. M. X. 41. Laborum. Gr. 409. 2. A. & S. 220. 
1. Orion. See on Ov. M. VIII. 207 ; Virg. A. I. 535. Lyncas is 



682 NOTES ON HORACE. 

elsewhere only of the feminine gender. Homer represents Irfie heroes 
as following in Elysium the favorite pursuits of their lives on earth. 
Cf. Virg. A. VI. 651 foil. 

ODE XIV. The subject of this Ode is the certainty of death for 
all men. The tone is rather more melancholy than is usual with 
Horace. 

5-8. Quotquot — dies = quotidie. Ritter thinks this makes 
the expression a ridiculous hyperbole, and prefers to render it, oder 
wie viele Tage (im Jahre) ablaufen mogen, that is, or as many as there 
are days in the year ! Illacrimabilem = the tearless ; i. e. pitiless. 
Geryonen = Geryon. See on Virg. A. VI. 289. On Tityon, see 
Virg. A. VI. 596 and Ov. M. X. 43. — 9 - 12. Unda ; i. e. of the Styx. 
Cf. Virg. A. VI. 438, 439. Scilicet = assuredly. Omnibus. Gr. 388. 
I. A. & S. 225. III. Munere. Gr. 419. I. A. & S. 245. I. Reges. 
See on C. I. 4. 14. Coloni. See on C. I. 35. 6. Inops is used by 
Horace, sometimes in an extreme, sometimes in a qualified sense 
of want, but generally the latter, like pauper. See on C. I. 1. 18. 
On the whole passage cf. C. II. 3. 21 foil, and Job hi. 19. — 14-20. 
Hadriae. See on C. I. 3. 15. Corporibus ; dative with nocen- 
tem. Dillenb. thinks it might be governed by metuemus ; but, as 
Macleane remarks, " Horace would not put the participle absolutely 
for noxium, especially with a dative immediately following and de- 
pending on another word." Austrum. See on S. II. 6. 18. Cocy- 
tos. See on Virg. A. VI. 297. Danai genus == the Danaides. 
See on Ov. M. X. 44 ; and also for Sisyphus. Laboris. Gr. 410. 
5. 1). A. & S. 217, R. 3. — 23-28. Cupressos. The cypress was 
sacred to Pluto. It was planted at graves, and branches of it were 
used in connection with funeral rites. Brevem dominum ( " at/us 
dominium breve est") = "their sometime lord" (Martin), like -the 
Greek deaTrorrjv oktyoxpoviov. It is nearly, but not precisely = 
"their short-lived master," as usually rendered. Caecuba (sc. vina) 
= Caecuban wine ; which took its name from the Caecubus ager, a 
district in Latium, bordering on the gulf of Amyclae. Clavibus. 
Gr. 705. V. A. & S. 324. 5. Superbo agrees with mero. This 
reading is supported by better MSS. than superbum, sztperbus, and 
superbis, each of which has its defenders among the critics. The 
pride of the heir is transferred to the wine. Pontificum — coenis 
= better than (that drunk at) the banquets of the pontifices. See on 
C. I. 37. 2. 

ODE XV. — When Augustus had brought the civil wars to an end, 
B. C. 29, he applied himself to the reformation of manners, and Hor- 
ace probably wrote this and other Odes (II. 18 ; III. 1 - 5) to promote 



ODES. BOOK II. ODE XV. 68$ 

the reforms of Augustus ; perhaps by his desire, or that of Maecenas. 
They should be read together, and with C. I. 2. From the reference 
to the temples in the last stanza, it may be assumed perhaps that this 
Ode was written B. C. 28, when Augustus set himself particularly to 
restore the public buildings, which had fallen into neglect during the 
civil wars. 

Augustus passed several sumptuary laws to keep down the expen- 
sive habits of the rich citizens, regulating in particular the cost of 
festivals and banquets. But they soon fell into disuse and contempt, 
as Tiberius, writing to the Senate fifty years afterwards, declared : 
" Tot a majoribus refertae leges, tot quas divus Augustus tulit, illae 
oblivione, hae, quod flagitiosius est, contemptu abolitae securiorem luxum 
fecere (Tac. Ann. III. 54). Horace in this Ode complains that the rich 
are wasting their means on fine houses and luxurious living, contrary 
to the example of their forefathers, who were content to live in huts 
while they built handsome temples for the gods. 

1-4. Jam = soon. Regiae moles = regal piles ; i. e. the villas 
of the rich. See on C. I. 4. 14. Undique — lacu = on every side 
fish-ponds will be seen spread out more widely than the Lucrine lake. 
See on Virg. G. II. 161. Cicero (ad Att. I. 18, 19,20) complains that 
some of his contemporaries (piscinarii he calls them) were so devoted 
to their fish-ponds that they cared more for them than for all the in- 
terests of the state, as if this might fall and they still keep their play- 
things. Ita sunt stulti ut amissa republica piscinas suas fore salvas 
sperare videantur (18). Elsewhere he calls them piscinarum Tritones 
(II. 9). Platanus caelebs = the unwedded plane-tree ; so called 
because the vine was not trained upon it. The elm, on the other 
hand (cf. Virg. G. I. 2), is called by Quintilian 7narita??i ulmum. — 
6 - 12. Narium = perfumes ; used contemptuously, Ritter thinks. 
Myrtus is here of the fourth declension, plural. Gr. 117. 2. A. & S. 
89 (b). Ictus ; sc. solis. In Ov. M. V. 389, some editors read ictus 
for ignes. Catonis ; i. e. M. Porcius Cato, called the Censor from the 
stern way in which he exercised the duties of that office, B. C. 184, 
doing all he could to put down luxurious and expensive habits. Cf. 
C. I. 12. 41. — 13-20. A man's property was called his census, 
because it was rated by the censors once in five years. Commune = 
the public revenue. Privatis agrees with decempedis ; but some 
excellent authorities make privatis = for private citizens. Horace 
complains that the verandas of these private houses were so large 
as to be measured with a ten-foot rule. Here they dined in the hot 
weather, and caught the cool breezes of the north. This practice was 
called coenatio ad Boream. Opacam excipiebat Arcton is like 
Virgil's Frigus captabis opacum (E. I. 53). Metata is used passively 
by no other writer. Fortuitum caespitem = the chance turf; i. e. 



684 NOTES ON HORACE. 

the turf that lies at hand, and therefore cheap. The reference is to 
cottages roofed with turf. Cf. Virg. E. I. 69. Dillenb., Ritter, and 
others take it to mean couches of turf. 

ODE XVI. — The person to whom this Ode is addressed, Pom- 
peius Grosphus, is said to have been of the equestrian order. He 
was possessed of large property in Sicily, of which island he was 
probably a native. He appears, from the latter part of the Ode, to 
have been in Sicily when it was written. Perhaps he had written 
Horace a letter which called up the particular train of thought that 
runs through the Ode, or had qualities which made it applicable to 
him. The object of the Ode is to reprove the craving for happiness 
which has been bestowed upon others. 

2. Simul ; sc. ac. The storms of the Aegean are mentioned, C. 
III. 29. 63. — 5 - 8. Thrace ; Greek form for Thracia, put, by me- 
tonymy, for Thraces. Medi = the Parthians. Venale (sc. otiuni) = 
to be bought. — 9 - 12. The idea is, that neither riches nor honor can 
drive away care. Summovet is the proper word to express the lie- 
tor's duty of clearing the way. Laqueata = panelled ; i. e. splendid. 
— 13-16. Vivitur — bene = he lives well with little. Gr. 301.3. A. 
& S. 142. 1. Cui goes with both splendet and aufert. Gr. 385 and 4. 
A. & S. 223 and 224, R. 2. The saltcellar, except among the very 
poorest people, was usually of silver, and an heir-loom. It stood in 
the middle of the table, and had a sacred character. Cupido is 
always masculine in Horace. — 17 20. Quid — multa==whydo 
we with all our might aim at so many things in our brief life ? For- 
tes = " tanto cum nistt." On jaculamur, cf. C. I. 2. 3. Quid 
mutamus = why do we seek in exchange (for our own) ? Cf. C. I. 
16. 25. Patriae limits exsul; a Grecism = 7rarpi§09 (pvyds. — 21. 
Aeratas = brazen, or brazen-beaked ; a common epithet of ships of 
war, because their rostra were ornamented and strengthened with 
bronze. Vitiosa = morbid. — 25. Laetus in praesens = con- 
tented with the present. — 26. Lento = quiet. — 29 - 32. Cita = 
early. Tithonum. See on Virg. G. I. 447. Et — hora = and 
Time may perhaps give me what it denies thee. — 33-36. Siculae. 
See Introduction. Hinnitum. See on beatorum, C. II. 2. 18. 
Equa. See on Virg. G. I. 59. Bis — tinctae. These garments 
were called 8ij3a<pa. The purple dyes most prized were the Tyrian, 
the SidOnian (E. I. 10. 26), the Laconian (C. II. 18. 8), and African 
(E. II. 2. 181). The garment dyed with this color (which was very 
costly) was the lacerna, an outer cloak worn over the toga. What these 
garments gained in appearance by their dye, they lost in savor ; for 
Martial reckons among the worst smelling objects bis murice vellus 
inquinatum. — 38-40. Spiritum — Camenae = a slight inspira- 



ODES. BOOK II. ODE XVIII. 685 

tion of the Grecian Muse ; a modest way of speaking of himself as a 
follower of the lyric poets of Greece. Parca non mendax. Cf. 
C. S. 25. The Parcae, the Greek Moipai, attended men at their birth, 
and foretold their character and fortunes, and so Horace says Parca 
gave him the gifts he mentions. The original conception, which 
Homer adopts, supposed but one Moipa ; but according to the later 
notions there were three. See next Ode, v. 16, and cf. C. II. 3. 16. 

ODE XVII. — Maecenas was an invalid for years ; and it would 
appear that Horace had to listen to his complaints and apprehensions 
of death, his fear of which is said to have been great. Horace re- 
monstrates with his friend in an affectionate way about his complaints 
and apprehensions. 

2. Amicum est is a translation of the Greek (piXov tori, and = 
placet.—*. Cf. C. I. 1. 2. — 5. Cf. C. I. 3. 8. — 6. Altera == I, the 
other part. Two definitions of friendship by Pythagoras are worth 
preserving. One is, aoopara pev 8uo "fyvx 7 ) °^ M 10 ' ana - the other, 
ecrn yap cos (fiapev 6 (piXos devrepos eyco. — 7. Carus = dear ; i. e. 
to myself. — 11. Utcumque = quandocumque. — 13-16. Chimae- 
rae and Gyas. See on Virg. A. VI. 287, 288. Justitia (Aikt)) was 
the sister of the Parcae. The idea may be, that the decrees of Fate 
are just as well as unerring. Cf. v. 39 of the preceding Ode. — 16 - 
22. What Horace thought of astrology may be gathered from C. I. 
11. He introduces a little of it here to entertain his friends, showing 
at the same time but little knowledge of the subject, and rather a 
contempt for it. Capricornus, which the sun enters in the winter, 
is charged with the storms of that season, and is called the tyrant of 
the Western wave, as Xotus is called lord of the Adriatic, C. I. 3. 15. 
Utrumque — astrum ; i. e. our stars (and our destinies) coincide. 
Impio = malignant. — 23-26. Saturno may be governed by re- 
fulgens (= shining in opposition) or eripuit ; or better, perhaps, as 
Dillenb. suggests, by both. See on cm, C. II. 16. 13. Quum — 
sonum refers to the applause with which Maecenas was greeted on 
his first appearance in public after his recovery from fever, " when 
thrice with glad acclaim the teeming theatre was heard to ring " 
(Martin). — 27-30. See C. II. 13. Sustulerat. Gr. 511. II. 2. 
A. & S. 259, R. 4 [b). Cf. Virg. A. II. 55. Faunus. See on C. I. 
4. 11. Cf. C. III. 4. 27 and C. III. 8. 7. Mercurialium virorum; 
i. e. of poets, who were under the protection of Mercury, curvae lyrae 
parens (C. I. 10. 6). Faunus was the son of Mercury. 

ODE XVIII. — This Ode deals with Horace's favorite themes, 
the levelling power of death, and the vanity of wealth and the schemes 
of the wealthy. It is like C. III. 24. 



686 NOTES ON HORACE. 

2-6. Lacunar. Cf. C. II. 16. n. Trabes = blocks ; i. e. the 
architrave resting on the columns. The marble from Mount Hymet- 
tus in Attica was white. The Numidian (ultima recisas Africa) 
was yellowish and variegated. On Attali, see C. I. i. 12 and note. 
The meaning is : I have not had the luck to receive an unexpected 
legacy, as the Romans got the property of Attalus. — 7, 8. Laconi- 
cas. See on C. II. 16. 36. Trahunt = spin. Honestae = nobiles ; 
i. e. not of the lowest rank. Martin translates : " Client dames of high 
degree." — 9-14. Fides — vena = integrity and a genial vein of 
talent. Nihil . . . deos ; with lacesso, after the analogy oiflagito, etc. 
Gr. 374. A. & S. 231. Amicum; i. e. Maecenas. Sabinis (sc. 
praediis) = my Sabine farm. See Life of Horace. — 16. Interire = 
to wane. — 17, 18. Tu — locas = you (i. e. any luxurious old man) 
enter into contracts for the hewing of marble, to ornament your 
houses. Locare may be said either of one who receives or of one 
who pays money ; locare rem faciendam or utendam, to let out work 
to be done, or to let a thing (as a house, etc.) to be used. In the 
former case the locator pays, in the latter he receives payment. Here 
the former is meant. The correlative terms are redemptor and con- 
ductor. See C. III. 1. 35 and note. — 20 - 22. Baiis = Baiae ; a 
town in Campania, the favorite watering-place of the Romans. The 
whole region was studded with the palaces of the nobility, which 
covered the shores from Baiae to Puteoli. Urges — litora. Cf. C. 
III. 1. 33. Many of the palaces were built out into the sea. Parum 
— ripa = terrae fastidiosus, C. III. 1. 36. — 23-28. Quid quod. 
See on Ov. M. V. 527. Revellis — terminos. A law of the twelve 
tables provided against this wrong : Patronus si clienti fraudem fecerit, 
sacer esto. Cf. Proverbs, xxiii. 10, 11. Salis ; from salire. Sor- 
didos = squalid. — 29 - 32. Nulla — herum = and yet no surer 
home awaits the rich lord than the fated bourn of greedy Orcus. 
Some critics join destinata and aula ; but we prefer, with Dillenb. 
and others, to join it with fine, which is sometimes feminine. See 
Virg. A. II. 554. — 33 - 36. Cf. C. I. 4. 13 ; C. II. 14. 9, etc. 
Satelles Orci ; i. e. Charon. This story of Prometheus trying to 
bribe Charon is not found elsewhere. Hie ; i. e. Orcus, non exora- 
bilis atiro (E. II. 2. 179). — 37-40. Tantali genus; i. e. Pelops, 
Atreus, Thyestes, etc. Levare depends on vocatus. Gr. 553. V. 
A. & S. 271, N. 3. Laborious. Gr. 419. I. A. & S. 245. I. Non 
vocatus audit is an instance of oxymoron. See on C. I. 34. 2. 

ODE XX. — This Ode appears to have been written impromptu, 
in reply to an invitation of Maecenas (v. 6). The poet says that he 
whom Maecenas delights to honor cannot fail to live forever, and that 
he already feels his immortality, and that wings have been given him 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE I. 687 

with which he shall soar to heaven, and fly to the farthest corners of 
the earth. 

1, 2. Non — ferar == on no common or mean wing shall I be 
borne. Biformis ; i. e. as swan and poet. — 6, 7. Sanguis —filius, 
as often in poetry. Cf. A. P. 292 ; Virg. A. VI. 835, etc. Quem 
vocas = whom thou dost invite (to visit thee). Cf. C. III. 18. 10, 
where he may allude to such invitations. Some critics join dilecte 
with vocas, and translate : whom thou callest " dear," O Maecenas ! 
On the one hand, vocas, as we have translated it, is peculiar ; on the 
other, the separation of the two vocatives is unnatural, and does vio- 
lence to the measure. Orelli and Dillenb. adopt the former, which 
seems to us the less harsh of the two ; while Ritter defends the latter. 
— 9, 10. Asperae pelles ; i. e. like the skin on a swan's legs. — 
13-16. Icaro.' See Ov. M. VIII. 183 foil, and Virg. A. VI. 14-33. 
Bospori. See on II. 13. 14. Syrtesque Gaetulas. See on C. I. 
22. 5, and cf. Virg. A. V. 51. Hyperboreosque campos = the 
Hyperborean plains ; i. e. the most northerly regions, without any 
reference to the fabulous Hyperborei, whom Pindar calls 'AttoWcovos 
depd-rrovTes, worshippers of Apollo. — 17 - 20. Colchus = the Col- 
chian ; living in Asia, east of the Euxine. The Marsi were one of the 
hardiest of the Italian tribes, and supplied the best foot-soldiers for 
the Roman army, which is here called Marsae cohortis. Cf. C. 
III. 5. 9 and Virg. G. II. 167. Dacus. See on C. I. 35. 9. Geloni. 
See on C. II. 9. 23. Hiber = Spaniard ; though some refer it to the 
Caucasian people of that name. Peritus = learned ; either in com- 
parison with the barbarous nations mentioned, or because of the culti- 
vation of Roman letters in Spain. Seneca, Lucan, and Martial were 
Spaniards. Some understand peritus to be used "by anticipation," 
and that the meaning is : the Iberian will become versed in my writ- 
ings. Rhodanique potor ; i. e. the Gaul. Cf. Virg. E. I. 63 and 
A. VII. 715: Qui Tiberim Fabarimque bibunt. — 21-24. Absint. 
Gr. 488. II. A. & S. 260, R. 6. Turpes = unmanly. Superva- 
cuos = superfluous. 



THE ODES. Book III. 

ODE I. — This and the four following Odes, written about the 
time when Augustus set himself the task of social reformation, after 
the close of the civil wars, are among the finest specimens of Hor- 
ace's manner. In this, the first of the series, the poet exhorts to 
moderate living and desires. 



688 NOTES ON HORACE. 

1-4. The first stanza is an imitation of the language used by the 
priests at the mysteries, requiring " the multitude profane," that is, all 
but the initiated, or those who were to be initiated, to stand aloof. 
Favere Unguis, like eu<£?7/xeli/, in its first meaning signifies the speak- 
ing words of good omen. But it came as commonly to signify total 
silence, as here. Horace speaks as if he despaired of impressing his 
precepts on any but the young, and bids the rest stand aside, as in- 
capable of being initiated in the true wisdom of life. Musarum 
sacerdos. So Ovid, Amor. III. 8. 23 : Ille ego Mtisarum purus 
Phoebique sacerdos. — 5-8. He begins by saying that even kings, 
though they are above their people, are themselves inferior to Jove, 
and goes on to say that, though one man may be richer or nobler than 
another, all must die ; that the rich have no exemption from care, but 
much more of it than the humble. Giganteo triumpho. See on 
Virg. G. I. 280-283 and ° v - M - I- 151 -155- Supercilio = with 
his nod. — 9-16. Est ut = it may be that. Latius ; i. e. over a 
broader estate ; or, as some say, farther apart. On ordinet, see 
Virg. G. II. 277. The meaning of the sentence is, that one man may 
own more land than another. Generosior is more noble by birth, 
as another is more distinguished for his character and deeds, and a 
third for the number of his clients. Clientes were free persons under 
the protection of rich and noble citizens, who in their relation to their 
clientes were called patroni. Campum ; sc. Martium, where the 
election of magistrates took place. Contendat = strives for office. 
Aequa = impartial. Omne — nomen. Cf. C. I. 4. 13 ; C. II. 3. 
26 ; C. II. 18. 32. — 17 - 20. The Sicilians were at one time prover- 
bial for good living. The story alluded to is that of Damocles (Cicero, 
Tusc. Disp. V. 21), who was invited by Dionysius of Syracuse to a 
feast, and was set in the midst of luxuries, but with a sword hanging 
by a single hair over his head ; by which the king meant him to un- 
derstand the character of his own happiness, which had excited the 
admiration of Damocles. Horace says generally, that the rich can- 
not enjoy their riches, since they have ever a sword, in the shape of 
danger, hanging over them. Cui. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). 
Dulcem — saporem = shall force sweet appetite. — 22 - 24. Vi- 
rorum limits domos. Tempe is plural, ra TefX7rr). This charm- 
ing valley was in Thessaly, between Olympus and Ossa. Cf. Virg. G. 
II. 469.-27, 28. Arcturi. See on Ov. M. II. 176 and Virg. G. I. 
67. Haedi = the Kid, or the Goat ; in the constellation Auriga. 
See on Ov. M. III. 594. — 29. Cf. Virg. G. I. 448, 449. — 30 - 32. 
Mendax. Cf. Ov. M. V. 479: arvaque jussit fallere depositum. Ar- 
bore nunc, etc. = while the tree (the olive) complains, now of the 
excessive rains, now, etc. — 33-37. Cf. C. II. 18. 20. The walls 
were faced on either side with stone, and loose stones (caementa) 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE II. 689 

were thrown in between. Frequens redemptor = many a con- 
tractor ; or frequens = frequenter. Do minus is the proprietor of the 
estate. Terrae fastidiosus = disdaining the land. Minae = 
threats (of conscience, perhaps). Triremi may be, as Macleane sug- 
gests, the rich man's private yacht. See on C. II. 16. 21. — 41-44. 
Phrygius lapis = Phrygian marble ; a very famous variety, white 
with red spots, from Synnada, in Phrygia. Purpurarum sidere 
clarior usus = the enjoyment (or possession) of purple brighter 
than a star ; a singular comparison. Falerna vitis = the Faler- 
nian vine ; by metonymy, for wine. The wine from the Falernus 
ager in Campania was considered the best in Italy. Achaemenium 
= Persian ; from Achaemenes, a king of Persia. Costum = oil, or 
ointment. — 45 - 48. Invidendis. Cf. C. II. 10. 7. Valle. For 
the construction, see on C. I. 16. 25. Operosiores = more burden- 
some, troublesome. 

ODE II. — The purpose of this Ode is to commend public and 
social virtue, and the opening shows that it is a continuation of the 
preceding Ode. It is chiefly addressed to young men. 

1-4. Angustam — condiscat — Let the youth, made strong by 
active warfare, learn patiently to endure privations. Amice ferre 
is the reverse of moleste ferre. — 5 - 12. Sub divo = in the open 
air. Trepidis in rebus = in danger. The picture which follows 
represents the fears of the Parthian mother and maiden, the danger 
of their son and lover, and the prowess of the Roman soldier, likened 
to a fierce lion. Helen, looking out with her damsels from the walls 
of Troy (II. III. 139), or Antigone looking from the walls of Thebes 
(Eurip. Phoen. 88), was perhaps before Horace's mind. Suspiret 
= sighs (and says) ; or, sighs (and fears) : probably the latter. Tactu 
limits asperum. — 13. Dulce — mori. In Horace's mind there 
was a close connection between the virtue of frugal contentment and 
devotion to one's country. Cf. C. IV. 9. 49 foil. — 14 - 16. The first 
of these lines is a translation from Simonides, — 

6 8' av davaros k'i\€ ko.1 tou <f)vy6fia%ov. 

Persequi = to pursue and overtake. Timido applies to both popli- 
tibus and tergo. See on C. I. 2. 1. — 17- 20. Virtus — sordidae = 

Virtue which knows no disgraceful defeat ; i. e. ignorant of because 
indifferent to, the disgrace, which, if disgraceful to any, is not so to 
the virtuous, but to those who reject them. Intaminatis is not 
found elsewhere. Like conta?ninatus, attaminatus, it is derived from 
the obsolete word tamino, and contains the root tag of tango, as- in- 
teger does. Secures = the axes ; i. e. her authority. The allusion 
is to the axes of the lictors, emblems of office. Popularis aurae. 



690 NOTES ON HORACE. 

Cf. Virg. A. VI. 817. — 22. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 130. Negata == denied 
(to others). — 25 - 32. Est — merces is a translation of 

ecrri Kai criyas aKivftvvov ytpas, 

which words of Simonides it appears Augustus was acquainted with, 
and approved. Plutarch tells this story. When Athenodorus was 
about to leave Augustus's camp, he embraced the emperor, and said, 
" O Caesar, whenever thou art wroth, say nothing, do nothing, till 
thou hast gone over in thy mind the twenty-four letters of the alpha- 
bet." Whereupon the emperor took him by the hand, and said, " I 
have need of thee still " ; and he detained him a whole year, saying, 
" Silence, too, hath its safe reward." Horace's indignation is levelled 
against the breaking of faith generally, and the divulging of the 
secrets of Ceres (whose rites, however, it appears, were attended by 
none but women) is only mentioned by way of illustration. Solvat 
(sc. de litore) = to unmoor. Diespiter. See on C. I. 34. 5. The 
meaning is, that Jupiter often punishes the innocent with the guilty. 
Pede claudo = though lame of foot. Justice, though often slow, is 
sure. 

ODE III. — This Ode commends the virtue of perseverance by the 
example of heroes who had secured divine honors by it. Juno is 
introduced as making a long speech to the gods, when it was proposed 
to admit Romulus among them. This speech is contrived to intro- 
duce the glory and extent of the Roman empire and the praises of 
Augustus. It also contains indirect exhortations to abstinence and 
contentment, and so bears on the general scope of these Odes. 

1-6. Justum — propositi = just and firm of will. Jubere 
occasionally takes an accusative, as here. Cf. E. II. 2. 63. In- 
stantis = menacing. Mente — solida = shakes him from his 
fixed purpose. Hadriae. See on C. I. 3. 15. Fulmiriantis is a 
word not used in prose in Horace's day. So triumphatis, v. 43. — 
7 - 12. Si — ruinae = Though the arch (of heaven) break and fall 
on (him), the wreck will strike a fearless man. Orbis is used for the 
sky, as the Greek poets used kvkXos with or without ovpavov. Illa- 
batur. Gr. 511. II. and 1. A. & S. 261. 2 and R. 1. Arte; i. e. con- 
stantia* Pollux. Cf. C. 1. 3. 2 and C. I. 12. 25 foil, where Hercules 
and the Dioscuri are associated, as here. Enisus — igneas = 
struggling upward gained the fiery heights ; " those far celestial cit- 
adels " ; " the starry eminences " (Martin). Enisus is better than 
innisus = relying upon, the reading of some editions. Cf.' Virg. G. II. 
360, where eniti, climb, is more forcible than inniti, the other reading. 
Quos inter ; a transposition not uncommon in poetry, upon the 
force, beauty, and harmony of which Dillenb. eloquently expatiates. 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE III. 69 1 

Cf. C. I. 2. 34; Ep. II. 38, VII. 3, XVI. 40; S. I. I. 47; E. II. 
1. 43 ; Virg. A. I. 32, II. 792, etc. On the apotheosis of Augustus, 
cf. Virg. G. I. 24 foil. Purpureo is applied to ore in its sense of 
lips. Cf. Virg. A. I. 590 and II. 593, and the nopcpvpeov dno OToparos 
of Simonides. Some have thought it = stained with the purple nec- 
tar. —13-16. Hac; sc. arte. Tigres. Cf. Ov. M. III. 668 and 
note. Martis equis. This appears to have been the genuine old 
legend of the disappearance of Romulus. Ovid also uses it, M. XIV. 
820 foil, and Fast II. 495 foil. Acheronta. See on C. I. 3. 36. — 
17 - 24. Elocuta . . . Junone = after Juno had spoken ; i. e. at the 
instance of Juno, who thus addressed the assembled gods. Ilion — 
fraudulento. The order is : Fatalis incestusque judex et peregrina 
mulier vertit in pulverem Ilion, Ilion, damnatum mihi castaeque Miner- 
vae, cum populo et fraudulento duce, ex quo Laomedon destituit deos 
pacta mercede. Ilion. See on C. I. 10. 14. Judex = Paris. Cf. 
Virg. A. I. 27. Mulier peregrina; contemptuously for Helen. 
Ex quo (sc. tempore) = ever since. This signifies that the fall of 
Troy was determined from the time of Laomedon's crime, and that 
the crime of Paris and Helen caused its accomplishment. In the 
Iliad (XXI. 441 foil.) Poseidon relates how he built the walls of 
Troy, while Apollo kept sheep for Laomedon, father of Priam, and 
how they were cheated of their pay and dismissed with threats, when 
their work was done. The same king cheated Hercules out of some 
horses he had promised him, and he lost his life for his pains. Juno 
and Minerva had their own quarrel with Troy for the judgment of 
Paris, which gave Venus the prize of beauty ; but Juno here makes 
out a different case against the city. The ablative with destituit is 
unusual. Damnatum = doomed ; given over for punishment. 
Duce = Laomedon, not Priam. = 25 - 32. Lacaenae. Cf. Virg. 
A. II. 601. Critics are not agreed whether adulterae is genitive 
with hospes, or dative with splendet We prefer the former con- 
struction, taking splendet absolutely = "floret, superbit." (Dillenb.) 
Refringit = repellit. Hectoreis. Gr. 441. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 4. 
Nostris ; referring to the gods. Ductum = production. Nepo- 
tem ; i. e. Romulus, her grandson through Mars. Troica sacerdos ; 
i. e. Rea Silvia, or Ilia, daughter of Numitor, and descended from 
Aeneas. Cf. C. I. 2. 17 and Virg. A. I. 273, 274 — 33 - 36. Marti 
= for the sake of Mars. Redonabo = condonabo. Lucidas sedes ; 
like igneas arces, v. 10. Ducerc = to quaff. Many MSS. have dis- 
cere= to become accustomed to (the flavor of the nectar) ; and Dillenb. 
and others adopt that reading. Quietis. Cf. S. I. 5. 101 and Virg. 
A. IV. 379. — 37-44. Dum = provided that. It is said that Julius 
Caesar had meant to transfer the seat of government from Rome to 
Ilium. There were probably some, at the time this Ode was written, 



692 NOTES ON HORACE. 

who advocated such a change, and it may have been a part of Horace's 
purpose to bring it into disfavor. Exsules ; i. e. the Romans. 
Priami busto. Priam had no tomb, according to Virgil's account 
(A. II. 557), but Horace assumes that he had one. No greater affront 
could be supposed than is here desired. Electra represents Aegisthus 
as leaping on her father's grave intoxicated with wine (Eurip. Elect. 
326). Compare Ep. XVI. 10 foil. Inulta = unmolested. Capito- 
lium= the Capitol ; the name given collectively to the sacred build- 
ings on the Capitoline hill. Ferox. See on C. I. 35. 10. — 46-52, 
Medius liquor = the intervening sea. Afro = the African ; poeti- 
cally for Africa. Qua dextra. The connection between the two 
stanzas is this : Let Rome extend her arms as she will, — to the ends 
of the earth, to the pillars of Hercules, to the Nile, — only let her 
not, as her possessions increase, learn to prize gold above virtue ; 
which is thus expressed : Only be she stronger by- despising the gold 
that yet lies hid, and is better placed when concealed in the earth, 
than by gathering it for man's use with hand that plunders all that is 
sacred. Humanos in usus is opposed to divinos implied in 
sacrum. Spernere. See on perpeti, C. I. 1. 18. — 53-56. Qui- 
cumque — obstitit = whatever boundary limits the world. Visere. 
See on tollere, C. I. 1. 8. Qua — ignes (sc. solis) ; i. e. in the torrid 
zone. Qua — rores; the frigid zone. Cf. C. I. 22. 17 and Virg. G. 
I. 234 foil. — 58-60. Hac lege = with this condition ; (namely,) 
ne velint, etc. Nimium pii= too loyal (to their Trojan ancestors). 
— 61 - 64. Alite lugubri = under evil auspices. The English 
order is, Fortuna Trojae, renascens lugubri alite, iterabitur tristi clade. 
On ducente, etc. cf. Virg. A. II. 613. Conjuge — sorore. Cf. 
Virg. A. I 46. — 65 - 67. Ter is often used poetically for an in- 
definite number. Cf. Virg. G. I. 281, etc. Phoebo. Cf. Virg. G. 
III. 36 : Trojae Cynthius auctor. See on v. 22. Argivis. Gr. 414. 
5. 1). A. & S. 248. I. R. 3. — 69-72. Jocosae = sportive. The 
poet checks his Muse for venturing to sing of heroic themes in lyric 
verse. Fervicax = bold, presumptuous. Tenuare = to debase, 
degrade. 

ODE IV. — Pursuing his purpose, Horace here commends the 
power of wisdom and learning in subduing brute force and violent 
passions, which he illustrates by a story about himself when he was 
an infant (see Life), and by the protection he has always received 
from the Muses, by the love Augustus bore them, and by the destruc- 
tion of the giants when they attacked the skies, which the poet at- 
tributes to Minerva, the goddess of wisdom. 

2-8. Longum melos seems to mean a sustained and stately 
song. Calliope. See on C. I. 12. 2. Acuta = clear, musical. 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE IV. 693 

Amabilis insania ; i. e. the furor poeticus, " the l fine frenzy ' cf 
Shakespeare ; under whose influence the poet already hears the Muse 
responding to his call, and is transported to the sacred groves she 
loves to haunt" (Lincoln). Martin translates, "frenzy's pleasing 
dream." On lucos — aurae, cf. Virg. A. VI. 638 foil. — 9-16. 
Fabulosae belongs to palumbes, "the storied doves," (Martin), 
like fabulosus Hydaspes, C. I. 22. 8. The range of the Apennines 
that bore the name Vultur was partly in Apulia and partly in Lu- 
cania. It is still called Monte Vulture. Venusia, Horace's birth- 
place, was near the boundary of those provinces, whence he calls 
Apulia his nurse. Doves, which were sacred to Venus, have their 
part in sundry tales. Here Horace intimates they were sent to cover 
him with laurel and myrtle in token of his future fame, and that he 
owed his safety to the Muses. In Apulo, a is long, u short ; in 
Apuliae, a short, u long. Such variations in proper names are not 
unusual in the Latin poets. The word Sicanus is used as three dif- 
ferent feet. Italus has the first syllable long or short, and so with 
other names. Ludo fatigatumque somno. It is clear that some 
other word, like oppressum, must be understood for somno. It is a 
translation of Ka^arco dddrjKores r)8e kol vnvco (II. x. 98). Acherontia, 
Bantia, and Forentum were neighboring towns, and still retain their 
names under the forms Acerenza, Vanci, Forenza. Stories similar 
to this are told of Stesichorus, Pindar, Aeschylus, Plato. — 17 - 20. 
Ut . . . dormirem = how I slept ; depending on mirum. Gr. 556, 

I. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 3, N. 3. Non sine dis ; i. e. under the pro- 
tection of the Muses. — 22-28. The Sabine hills were part of the 
Apennines, which Horace had to climb when he went to his farm. 
Praeneste (Palestrina) was in Latium, about twenty-three miles due 
east of Rome, on the edge of the Apennines. It was a favorite sum- 
mer retreat in Horace's day. Tibur. See on C. I. 7. 13. £>upinum 
= sloping ; because built on the side of a hill rising from the right 
bank of the Anio. Baiae. See on C. II. 18. 20. Liquidae prob- 
ably refers to the clearness and purity of the atmosphere. Vestris 
fontibus. All retired streams and shady groves were held sacred 
to the Muses. Parnasus had its fountain, Castalia ; and Helicon two, 
Hippocrene and Aganippe. Philippis. See Life. Arbos. See C. 

II. 13. Palinurus. See Virg. A. VI. 381. Horace's escape from 
shipwreck off Cape Palinurus is nowhere else related ; and it is 
doubtful when it happened. Sicula unda here means the Tuscan 
Sea, not the Mare Siculum, which was on the other side of Sicily. — 
29-36. Utcumque. See on C. I. 35. 23. Bosporum. See on 
C. II. 13. 14. Assyrii = Syrian. The poets confounded Syria and 
Assyria, as did the prose writers sometimes. Cicero speaks of reges 
Persarum ac Syrorum, for the kings of Persia and Assyria (in Verr. 



694 NOTES ON HORACE. 

H- 3- 33)- Britannos. The stories of the human sacrifices of the 
ancient Britons are too authentic to be doubted. The Concani were 
a Cantabrian tribe. Virgil (G. III. 463) says that the Geloni (C. II. 
9. 23) ate cheese dipped in horse's blood. Amnem ; i.'e. the Tanais, 
or Don. — 37-40, Simul ; sc. ac. Addidit = assigned. After the 
conquest of the Salassi B. C. 25, Augustus assigned their territory to 
some of the praetorian troops, and there they built Augusta Praetoria 
(Aosta) ; and lands were assigned to others in Lusitania, on which 
they built Augusta Emerita (Merida). Tacitus uses adder e in the 
same sense (Ann. XIII. 31). Some editors prefer the reading abdidit, 
as more poetical, and conveying the idea of repose after long service 
in war. Another reading is reddidit, which also has good MSS. 
authority. Pierio antro. See Ov. M. V. Introduction (p. 403), and 
on Virg. E. III. 85. Suetonius says that Augustus devoted himself 
to literary pursuits with great zeal, and even dabbled in poetry. — 
41 - 48. Vos — almae = Ye give peaceful counsel, and rejoice in 
giving it, (because ye are) gentle. Consilium is here a trisyllable. 
Cf. connubio, Virg. A. I. 73. The wars of the Titans (with Uranus), 
the Gigantes, the Aloidae, and Typhon, or Typhoeus, (with Zeus), 
are all mixed up in the description which follows. Cf. Virg. G. 
I. 279 foil. But neither poet was writing a mythological history. 
There is great power in the description here. Milton mixes up myths 
in much the same way when it answers his purpose to do so ; as 
in Lycidas (where he speaks of Atropos as " the blind Fury "), in 
L 1 Allegro and // Penseroso (in the genealogies of Mirth and Melan- 
choly), in Comus, the Hymn on the Nativity, and elsewhere. Ut. 
The accusative with the infinitive would express merely the fact ; ut 
with the subjunctive tells how it all happened (Dillenb.). Caduco = 
swift-descending ; like Ka.Tau.$a.Tr\s in Aeschylus. Inertem = motion- 
less ; like bruta, C. I. 34. 9. Regna tristia = the gloomy realms 
(of Pluto). — 49 - 56. Juventus refers to the Gigantes. Brachiis 
limits fidens ; the ^a'pecro-i TrtTvoiQoTes of Homer. Fratres ; i. e. 
Otus and Ephialtes, the sons of Aloeus, whose exploit of piling 
Pel ion on Ossa in their attack upon Olympus (Olympus, Ossa, and 
Pelion formed a continuous range, running down the coast of Thes- 
saly), is first mentioned by Homer, Od. XI. 314. See Virg. G. I. 280, 
where frondosum explains Horace's opaco. Ovid, Fasti, III. 441, 
inverts the order, and puts Pelion uppermost, as Horace does. In 
Fasti, V. 35, he attributes to the hundred-handed giants (v. 69) the 
exploit which the oldest legend assigns to the Aloidae. These varia- 
tions are only worth noticing as they help to show that the Romans 
set little value by these stories, and only used them as ornaments of 
poetry ; and to prevent students from wasting their time in attempt- 
ing to reconcile statements which are not reconcilable. — Typhoeus 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE IV. 695 

(Tvdxoevs) warred with Zeus on his own account. He belonged neither 
to the Titanes nor the Gigantes. Mimas and Rhoetus were of the 
Gigantes. Porphyrion and Enceladus were of the same family. Cf. 
Virg. A. III. 578. On imposuisse, cf. collcgisse, C. I. 1. 4. — 57- 
64. Aegida = the aegis ; the skin of the goat Amalthea, the nurse 
of Zeus, said to have been worn by him first in these wars with the 
Gigantes. It is occasionally found in ancient representations of 
Jupiter, but more commonly of Minerva. To account for the epi- 
thet sonantem, we must understand that the aegis was taken to repre- 
sent, not only the goat-skin folded over the breast, but also a shield 
and a metal breastplate, either of which it may signify here. Homer 
represents both Apollo and Pallas as wearing their father's aegis. 
Avidus = eager (for the battle). In enumerating the principal gods 
who assisted Zeus in the battle, Horace means to say that, although 
they were present, it was Pallas to whom the victory was mainly 
owing. The Greek Here was commonly represented naked, or partly 
so. The Roman Juno was always clad as a matron from head to 
foot. Her favorite character was Juno Matrona or Romana, which 
meant the same thing. Her introduction, therefore, under this title, 
is meant as a compliment to Rome. The description of Apollo com- 
bines his various places of abode. Castalia was a fountain on Par- 
nasus. Lyciae dumeta are woods about Patara, a town in Lycia, 
where Apollo passed six months of the year, as he passed the other 
six at Delos, which place Horace means by natalem silvam ; i. e. 
the woods on Mount Cynthus. Cf. Virg. A. III. 73 foil, and A. IV. 
143 foil. — 65-72. Vis — sua = " unreasoning strength by its own 
weight must fall." (Martin.) Temperatam = governed, controlled ; 
i. e. by reason. Idem = and yet they. See on C. II. 10. 22. Vires 
= brute force. Gyas. See on C. II. 17. 14 He belonged to another 
family consisting of three brothers, Gyas, Cottus, and Briareus or 
Aegaeon, distinguished from the rest by having each of them a hun- 
dred arms. Most accounts represent these brothers as helping Zeus. 
Horace follows a different legend. Integrae (like intactae, which has 
the same root) = chaste. See on C. I. 7. 5 and C. III. 2. 18. Cf. 
Virg. A. I. 345. Orion. See on C. II. 13. 39. Virginea = virginis ; 
adjective for limiting genitive, as often. — 73-80. These monsters, 
with the exception of the Aloidae, were said to be the offspring of 
Terra (cf. Virg. A. VI. 580; A. IV. 178; Ov. M. I. 157, etc.) ; and 
they are often represented as buried under islands and mountains for 
their punishment. The one under Aetna is variously spoken of as 
Typhoeus, Enceladus, and Briareus. Cf. Ov. M. V. 346 foil, and 
Virg. A. III. 578 foil. Tityi. See on C. II. 14 8. Nequitiae 
(= nequam, the abstract for the concrete), is dative with additus. 
Amatorem ; sc. Proserpinae. Pirithoum. See on C. IV. 7. 28 
and on Virg. A. VI. 601. 



6 9 6 



NOTES ON HORACE. 



ODE V. — In the year B. C. 53, M. Licinius Crassus, as consul, 
marched an army into Mesopotamia against the Parthians, and was 
disastrously defeated, losing his own life, with twenty thousand men 
killed and ten thousand prisoners. Again, in the year B. C. 36, M. 
Antonius attacked the Parthians, and was repulsed with great loss. 

It was Horace's purpose in this Ode to allay the prevalent feeling 
of soreness and impatience under the disgrace of these reverses, so 
long unredeemed ; and to discourage any hope or desire for the re- 
turn of the Parthian prisoners. This desire he seems to impute to 
a degenerate spirit, and the story of Regulus is introduced to call 
back men's minds to the feeling of a farmer generation. 

1-4. Coelo — regnare = We believe that Jove the Thunderer 
reigns in heaven. Jupiter Tonans had a temple on the Capitoline 
hill. Credidimus. See on collegisse, C. I. 1. 4. Praesens ; sc. in 
terris, as opposed to coelo. Adjectis = when he shall have added. 
He had not done it, nor did he ever do it. Gravibus. Cf. C. I. 

2. 22. — 5 - 7. It was about twenty-eight years since the disastrous 
campaign of Crassus. Orelli says Horace does not allude to M. An- 
tonius's losses in the same quarter eighteen years afterwards, partly 
because it would have been indelicate towards Augustus, and partly 
because of his affection for his son, L. Antonius. Vixit is emphat- 
ic, since they married to save their lives. The disgrace lay in their 
intermarrying with those who not only had not connubium with 
Rome, but were her enemies. Pro — mores ! = Alas for our senate 
and our altered manners ! Pro expresses vehemence varying in kind 
according to circumstances. It is followed by the nominative or ac- 
cusative. In the common exclamation, Pro deum homimimque fidem ! 
the accusative is always used. The Curia (called Hostilia, because 
it was said to have been built by Tullus Hostilius) was the senate- 
house. — 8 - 12. In armis ; for the prisoners may have served in 
the Parthian armies. Marsus et Apulus. See on C. II. 20. 18. 
It does not appear that the Apulians were particularly good soldiers, 
but the states of Italy all furnished troops (socii), and the Roman 
army is here referred to. Perhaps Horace added the Apulians to the 
Marsi through affection for his native state. Anciliorum. Gr. 136. 

3. A. & S. 93. 2. The ancilia were twelve shields, of which, accord- 
ing to tradition, eleven were made by order of Numa after the pattern 
of one that was found in his house, and was supposed to have come 
down from heaven. It was prophesied that, while the ancile was pre- 
served, Rome should survive. The ancilia were kept by the priests 
of Mars (Salii) in his temple. By togae is meant his citizenship, 
since none but Roman citizens wore the toga. Horace collects the 
most distinguished objects of a Roman's reverence, his name, his 
citizenship, the shield of Mars, only to be lost, and the fire of Vesta, 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE V. 697 

only to be extinguished, when Rome should perish. Incolumi Jovi 
= while Jove is safe ; i. e. while the Capitol is safe, where was Jove's 
temple. — 13 - 16. Hoc — aevum = This the far-seeing mind of 
Regulus guarded against, when he refused to agree, to dishonorable 
conditions, and drew from such a precedent a presage of ruin upon 
generations to come ; i. e. Regulus had foreseen the danger to poster- 
ity of a precedent which should sanction the purchase of life upon 
dishonorable terms. In the year B. C. 256, during the first Punic 
war, M. Atilius Regulus, being consul, invaded Africa, and after 
many successes, taking many towns and laying waste the country, he 
was terribly defeated and taken prisoner with 500 others. After he 
had been five years a prisoner, the Carthaginians sent him to Rome 
to negotiate peace, which, at his own instigation, was refused. He re- 
turned, and, it is said, was put to death with torture. On condici- 
onibus, see Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 3. — 17-24. Si — pubes 
= if the prisoners were not left to die unpitied. Afiixa. See on 
Virg. A. III. 287. Militibus. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. 
Tergo is dative for in tergum. Portasque non clausas = the 
gates (of Carthage) wide open. Cf. A. P. 199. Marte populata 
nostro = devastated by our army. Gr. 705. II. A. & S. 324. 2. — 
25 - 30. Repensus = ransomed ; a sense not found elsewhere. 
Scilicet marks the irony. Gr. 705. IV. A. & S. 324. 4. Flagi- 
tio — damnum = you are adding mischief to disgrace ; the mischief 
of a bad precedent, as Dillenb. suggests. Ritter refers dammun to 
the waste of money in ransoming those who were worthless. Mac- 
leane thinks, from what follows, that the mischief would arise from 
having among them again those who had sunk so low. The flagitiitm 
was in the defeat and surrender. Fuco = dye ; a marine plant of 
some kind which yielded a red juice used in coloring. From some 
accounts it would seem to be a mordant rather than a dye. Nee — 
deterioribus = true virtue, when it has once been lost, does not 
care to be restored to the degenerate. Horace does not seem to con- 
sider that he is making Regulus speak bitter things against himself. 
The argument of Regulus is not worth much, and is an invention of 
Horace's. There is an opposite statement in Virgil, A. II. 367. De- 
terioribits is dative ; not ablative, as some make it, translating : "does 
not suffer itself to be replaced by false virtue, or virtue of a lower 
sort." — 34-40. Marte = proelio. See on v. 24, and cf. Virg. A. 
II. 335. Hie — miscuit = He ( i. e. the coward), not considering 
to what he ought to owe his life ( i. e. to his own sword, una sali/s 
victis, Virg. A. II. 354), confounded peace with war ; i. e. made peace 
for himself on the field of battle. Duello ; old form for bello. See 
on Ov. M. V. 555. Frobrosis — niinis = the higher (prouder) for 
the disgraceful downfall of Italy. Ruinis ; abl. of cause. — 42-44 



698 NOTES ON HORACE. 

A Roman citizen taken prisoner by the enemy lost his status or civil 
rights, and he who had done so was said to be capite minutus or- demi- 
mitus, or capitis minor. Livy says the Romans always wanted 
compassion for their own soldiers taken in war (XXII. 61). Torvus 
= sternly. Humi. Gr. 424. 2. A. & S. 221, R. 3. — 45, 46. La- 
bantes = wavering, irresolute. Consilio ; abl. of means with fir- 
maret. Nunquam — dato = such as was never given before. — 
49 - 56. Cf. Cicero de Off. III. 27 : Nee vero ignorabat se ad crude- 
lissimum ho stem et ad exquisita supplicia proficisci. Sciebat = he 
knew all the while. Note the force of the imperfect. Reditus. 
Dillenb. thinks the plural is used to express his frequent efforts to 
shake off his friends and return ; but, as Macleane suggests, it is more 
probably to avoid the recurrence of a final m. Quam ; with non 
aliter. The sense is : just as if he had been settling a dispute, as 
patroni were wont to do for their clientes (see on C. III. 1. 10), and was 
going to his country-seat at Venafrum or Tarentum. Venafrum, 
now Venafro, was a town near the river Vulturnus, on the confines of 
Latium, celebrated for its olives and oil. Tarentum, the modern Ta- 
ranto, was on the western coast of Calabria. It is called Lacedemonian, 
because its inhabitants were expelled by Spartan invaders, B. C. 708. 

ODE VIII. — This Ode was written on the anniversary of Horace's 
accident with the tree (C. II. 13). It is addressed to Maecenas, 
whom he invites to join him in celebrating the day, which was the 
first of March, B. C. 25 probably. 

1-4. Martiis caelebs. The Matronalia, or feast of married per- 
sons in honor of Juno Lucina, when husbands made presents to their 
wives, and offered prayers for the continuance of happiness in their 
married life, was celebrated on the first of March. Quid velint = 
what mean. Gr. 525. " A. & S. 265. Acerra thuris = a box of 
frankincense. Caespite vivo ; i. e. on an altar of green turf. Cf. 
Ov. M. IV. 752. — 5-8. Docte — linguae; i.e. well read in the 
literature of Greece and Rome ; perhaps said sportively in this con- 
nection. Sermones. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. Epulas. A 
solemn sacrifice was commonly followed by a banquet, at which liba- 
tions were poured to the god to whom the sacrifice had been offered. 
Funeratus is not found in any other writer earlier than Pliny. He 
and others after him use funerare for to bury. Horace here attributes 
to Liber the deliverance he had before attributed to Mercury, Faunus, 
and the Muses, successively. See on C. II. 17. 28. Why the goat 
was sacrificed to Bacchus, Virgil tells us, G. II. 376-380. — 9-12. 
Anno redeunte = with the returning year ; i. e. every year. The 
amphorae were kept in the apotheca in the upper part of the house, 
to which the smoke from the bath had access, as this was thought to 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE XVI. 699 

hasten the ripening of the wine and to improve its flavor, just as 
Madeira wine is improved by being kept in a warm temperature. The 
amphora being lined with pitch or plaster, and the cork being also 
covered with pitch, the smoke could not penetrate if these were prop- 
erly attended to. Amphorae is the dative. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 222, 
R. 2. Consule Tullo. L. Volcatius Tullus was consul B. C. 66, 
the year before Horace was born. This wine, therefore, had probably 
been in the amphora upwards of forty years. Sulla once treated the 
Romans with some wine more than forty years old. — 13 - 15. 
Amici sospitis = for (on account of) the safety of thy friend ; a 
Greek construction. Centum ; a hyperbole. Vigiles — lucem; i. e. 
keep up the feast til] daybreak. — 17 - 24. Mitte = dismiss. Cotiso 
was king of the Daci, a tribe on the Danube. Sibi ; with infestus, 
though it may depend on luctuosis or dissidet. On the quarrels of the 
Parthians among themselves, see Introduction to C. I. 26. The Can- 
tabri, in Spain, were a fierce and warlike people, and were subdued 
by Augustus only after a struggle of several years. Hence sera — 
catena. The Scythae may be the Scythians who helped Phraates ; 
or, as some think, the Geloni and other tribes beyond the Danube. 
Horace means, in general terms, that the enemies of Rome were no 
longer troubling her. — 25 - 28. Negligens — laboret = not anxious 
lest in aught the people suffer ; i. e. since you have no cause to be 
anxious about public affairs. Privatus, according to Dillenb. and 
Ritter, is = cum privatus sis, but the explanatory remarks of the 
former make it quite the same as Macleane's " Be here the private 
gentleman," which seems to express the meaning. Severa ; i. e. 
civiles curas (v. 17). 

ODE XVI. — Horace here dwells on his favorite theme, content- 
ment and moderation, which he is able to illustrate by the example 
of Maecenas (v. 20), as well as his own. 

1-4. Danaen. See on Ov. M. IV. 611. Tristes = strict. Mu- 
nierant. See on sustulerat, C. II. r7- 28. Adulteris = lovers. — 
7, 8. Fore is dependent on the verbum sentiendi implied in risissent. 
Pretium == a bribe. The fable of the shower of gold has here its 
simplest explanation. — 10-16. Amat. See on amant, C. II. 3. 
10. Auguris ; i. e. Amphiaraus. His wife Eriphyle, (see on Virg. 
A. VI. 445) bribed by her brother Polyneices, induced her husband 
to join the expedition against Thebes, where he fell, enjoining upon 
his sons to put their mother to death. This Alcmaeon did, and, like 
Orestes, was pursued by the Furies, and finally lost his life in attempt- 
ing to get possession of the gold necklace with which Eriphyle had 
been bribed. Vir Macedo; i. e. Philip, who used to say that he 
could take any town into which an ass could climb laden with gold. 



700 NOTES ON HORACE. 

Juvenal (S. XII. 47) calls him callidus emptor Olyntki, and Valerius 
Maximus (VII. 2. 10), majore ex parte mercator Graeciae quam victor. 
The oracle of Apollo had told him, it is said, to fight with silver 
spears (dpyvpeais Xoy^a«ri) and he should always conquer. Mu- 
nera — duces is supposed to refer to Menas, otherwise called 
Menodorus, the commander of Sex. Pompeius's fleet, who deserted 
from him to Augustus, and back to Pompeius, and then to Augustus 
again. He was rewarded beyond his merits. Saevos = " rough " ; 
or, perhaps, brave, as in Virg. A. I. 99. — 18. Majorum is neuter, 
and objective genitive with fames. Jure = with good reason, then ; 
referring to what precedes. — 20. Decus ; because he preferred to 
remain an eqztes, when higher rank was in his power. — 21 - 28. 
Quanto — feret. This sentiment approaches as near as possible 
to the fundamental rule of Christian morals. The accuracy of the 
picture in the next verses must not be insisted on too closely. It 
would imply that Horace, a wealthy Epicurean, had thrown up his 
riches in contempt, and gone over to the ranks of the Stoics. But as 
Horace never was rich, he could not have acted the deserter on these 
terms, though he changed his opinions. Horace may sometimes be 
supposed to put general maxims in the first person, without strict 
application to himself. Nudus signifies one who has left everything 
he had behind him. By contemptae he means, not that for which 
he had a contempt, as some explain it, but despised by others ; i. e. 
the rich. Apulus. Apulia, with the exception of a comparatively 
small tract which was productive, was occupied with forests or pas- 
ture lands, or tracts of barren hills. But Horace likes to speak of 
his own country with respect. See on C. III. 5. 9. Arat; first 
syllable lengthened by the caesttra. Occultare=to hoard; i. e. in 
order to raise the price. Meis is emphatic, as proprio horreo, C. 
I. 1. 9. — 29-32. Rivus; i. e. the Digentia. Certa fides. See 
C. III. 1. 30 and note. Fallit beatior is a Greek construction, 
\av6dvei oXfituTepov ov. The meaning is : Mine is a happier lot 
than his who has all Africa for his own, though he knows not that 
it is so. Cf. sensit medios delapsus in hostes, for se delapstim esse, Virg. 
A. II. 377. — 33-36. Calabrae apes. Tarentum in Calabria was 
famous for its honey. Laestrygonia amphora ; i. e. a jar of For- 
mian wine. Cf. Sabina diota, C. I. 9. 7. The inhabitants of Formiae 
in Latium supposed it to be the same as the Laestrygonia mentioned 
by Homer, Od. X. 81. Languescit = ripens, mellows. Gallicis 
pascuis ; i. e. the rich pastures in the basin of the Po. The wool 
from that region was famous. — 39-44. Cupidine. See on C. II. 
16. 15. There was a Mygdonia in Mesopotamia, and Bithynia is said 
to have been called by that name of old. The Mygdonia of Asia 
Minor was not very clearly defined. Alyattei = of Alyatteus, or 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE XXIV. 70I 

Alyattes. See Gr. 46. 3. 5) and 92. 2. A. & S. 54. 5 and 73. 1, R. 
Bene est ; sc. ei = it is well with him ; happy is he. Gr. 392 and 2. 
A. & S. 228. 1. 

ODE XXIV. — This Ode is of the same class, and was probably 
written about the same time as the early ones of Book III. It deals 
with the licentious abuses of the times, and points indirectly to Au- 
gustus as the real reformer of them, as in C. I. 2. The variety of 
images and illustrations in this Ode is very remarkable, and they are 
particularly well chosen and original. There is no one of the Odes 
that more completely exhibits Horace's peculiar style. 

1-4. Intactis. Cn. Pompeius, Marcellus, and others had entered 
Arabia Petraea ; but Arabia Felix, which is here referred to, had not 
yet been invaded. Caementis. See on C. II. 18. 20 and C. III. 1. 
35. Occupes. Gr. 515. A. & S. 263. 2. Mare Apulicum would 
apply to the bay on which Tarentum is situated, and there the Romans 
had handsome villas. Horace, however, had the other sea more in 
mind, perhaps with reference to Baiae in particular, that place being 
situated on the northern projection of the Sinus Cumanus. — 5-8. 
Si — clavos. Some take this to mean : when Fate drives in the 
nails up to the heads. Others : when Fate has driven her adamantine 
nails into thy head ; i. e. to kill thee. Others : when Fate, by driving 
her nails (C. I. 35. 18) into the roof of the house, puts an end to the 
work. On the whole, this last seems the most satisfactory interpre- 
tation. It is adopted by Orelli, Dillenb., Lincoln, and others. Mac- 
leane prefers the second. Ritter suggests yet another explanation ; 
that of Fate nailing a man to the top of his house, as Prometheus 
was fastened. Mortis laqueis. Cf. Psalm cxvi. 3. —9-16. Cam- 
pestres — vivunt=The nomadic Scythians live happier, whose 
wagons, as their custom is, carry their wandering homes. Getae. 
See Life of Ovid, and Trist. IV. 10. no. The habits of the Suevi, 
as described by Caesar (B. G. IV. 10), are here assigned to the Getae. 
Immetata does not occur elsewhere. Virgil (G, I. 125, 126) and 
Ovid (M. I. 135, 136) make this freedom from enclosures a feature 
of the golden age. Fruges et Cererem = Cereris fruges. Gr. 704. 
II. 1. A. & S. 323. 2 (3). Defunctumque laboribus is applied 
to death, C. II. 18. 38; here it means one who has finished his work. 
Aequali — vicarius = a substitute relieves him with an equal share 
(of toil). — 17-24. Illic — iimocens = there the guiltless wife is 
kind to her motherless step-children. Adultero. Gr. 419. II. and 
4. 2). A. & S. 245. II. and R. 1. Dos — c as tit as , i. e. an ample 
portion for wives is their virtue and that chastity which, living in 
unbroken bonds, shrinks from any other man (than the husband). 
Parentium. Gr. 89. II. 2, foot-note. A. & S. 82. II. 4. With Et 



702 NOTES ON HORACE. 

peocare repeat illic. Aut = alioquin. Peccare refers to violations 
of castitas. — 25 - 32. Quisquis = si quis. Pater Urbium is a 
title not found elsewhere, but is analogous to Pater Patriae, C. I. 2. 50. 
The phrase is the subject of subscribi. Postgenitis does not occur 
elsewhere. Quatenus = quandoquidem, since. Cf. S. I. 1. 64.. In- 
columem ; i. e. of the living. The sentiment is repeated and illus- 
trated, E. II. 1. 10 foil. — 33-44. Quid — reciditur ; i. e. what is 
the use of complaining so sadly, if crime is to go unpunished ? There 
were many perhaps who complained, as Horace did, of the state of 
society, but he says active measures are wanted for the suppression 
of crime, and these Augustus resorted to, by the enactment of laws 
regulating expense, marriage, etc. Cf. E. II. 1. 3. Quid — pro- 
ficiunt. " But then," he goes on, " laws are of little use, unless the 
character of the age supports them, for there are vices which the law 
cannot reach, such as the spirit of avarice," which he goes on to 
speak of. Tacitus has echoed Horace's words : Bonae leges minus 
valent quam boni mores (Germ. 19). On the description of the torrid 
and frigid zones, cf. C. I. 22. 17 foil, and III. 3. 55, 56. On merca- 
tores see on C. I. 31. 12. Cf. Caes. B. G. I. 1, where the enterprise 
of these men and the effects their visits had on uncivilized people, are 
noticed. Horrida — navitae. Cf. C. I. 3. 9 foil. Magnum — 
opprobrium = (If) poverty (esteemed) a great disgrace. — 45 - 50. 
He recommends that the rich should take their wealth and offer it to 
the gods in the Capitol, or throw it into the sea ; for multitudes would 
applaud such a sacrifice, and accompany those who made it to the 
temple. Lapides, Dillenb. says, are pearls. He quotes Ov. Med. 
Fac. 20, 21 : conspicuam gemmis vultis habere manum, Induitis collo 
lapides oriente paratos. Many similar examples might be given ; as 
Catullus, 68. 3 : pelluciduli deliciis lapidis ; Seneca, in Hippol. 391 : 
niveus lapis . . . Indici donum maris ; also, in Here. Oet. 661 : lapis 
Eoa lectus in unda ; Martial, XL 50. 4 : gemma vel a digito, vel cadit 
aure lapis, etc. Scelerum. Gr. 410. III. A. & S. 215. Poenitet; 
sc. nos. — 54 - 5.8. Formandae. The word occurs in the same 
sense, C. I. 10. 3 ; E. II. 1. 128, etc. Ludere. See on pati, C. I. 1. 
18. The trochus was a hoop of metal, and it was guided by a rod 
with a hook at the end, such as boys use now. Horace means to say 
that the young are brought up in idle, dissipated habits, and instead 
of manly exercises they amuse themselves with the childish Greek 
sports and gambling, while their fathers are employed in making 
money by fraud. Malis ; from malle. There were laws at Rome, 
as there are with us, against gaming, which practice was nevertheless 
very prevalent among all classes, in the degenerate times of the re- 
public and the empire. Juvenal complains that young children learnt 
it from their fathers (XIV. 4). Cicero charges M. Antonius with 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE XXIX. 703 

being a great gambler, and with pardoning a certain condemned 
gambler with whom he had been in the habit of playing (Phil. II. 
23). — 59-64. Perjura patris fides; i. e. his perjured and faith- 
less father. Consortem socium means the partner whose capital 
(sors) was embarked with his own. The Romans held it to be a very- 
serious offence for a man to cheat his partner. Cicero (pro Rose. 
Am. C. 40) says : in rebus minoribus fallere socium turpissimum est. 
Horace couples the crimes of cheating a partner and a ward in E. II. 
1. 123. Properet = hastens (to heap up). Scilicet — rei = of 
course, vile wealth increases ; still something is ever lacking to (what 
seems) the incomplete fortune. Improbus is one of the most difficult 
words to which to assign its proper meaning. Orelli has quoted in- 
stances in which it is applied to labor, a jackdaw, a man, a mountain, 
a tiger, winter, and the Hadriatic Sea. He might have added others, 
as self-love, an old woman, an angry man, etc. It implies " excess," 
and that excess must be expressed according to the subject described. 

ODE XXIX. — This is an invitation from the poet to his patron, 
pressing him to pay him a visit at his farm. He bids him throw off 
the cares of the state, and live for the enjoyment of the hour. The 
time is the dog-days. The year is uncertain. 

1-4. Tyrrhena — progenies. Cf. C. I. 1. 1. Lene; like molle, 
C. I. 7. 19. Verso = broached. Cado. Gr. 422. 1. 2). A. & S. 
254, R. 3. The balanus was an oleaginous nut, here put for the 
oil obtained from it. — 5 - 8. Morae. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. 
Ne is more abrupt, - and therefore more spirited than nee, which some 
editors prefer ; but either is well enough. Udum is an epithet com- 
monly applied to Tibur, which stood on the banks of the Anio. The 
town itself was built on the side of a hill (C. III. 4. 23), but the fields 
below seem to have been damp (see C. I. 7. 14) from a number of 
small streams which watered them. It appears that Maecenas was 
sighing for the country all the time he was detained at Rome. Tele- 
gonus, son of Ulysses and Circe, was the reputed founder of Tuscu- 
lum and Praeneste. One of the legends of the death of Ulysses 
attributes it to this son. Aesula was probably a town between 
Praeneste and Tibur, but no traces of its site remain, and Pliny says 
that it no longer existed in his time (III. 5). On contempleris see 
Gr. 4SS. II. A. & S. 260, R. 6. — 10. Molem refers to the palace 
of Maecenas on the Esquiline hill. — 11. Omitte. This is the only 
instance in this book of an iambus at the beginning of the third verse. 
It occurs four times in the First book, and twice in the Second. It 
does not occur in the Fourth. On mirari, see on sectari, C. I. 38. 3. 
— 14-16. Lare. See on C. I. 12. 43. On aulaeis and ostro, see 
on Virg. A. I. 697, 700. Sollicitam — frontem= have smoothed 



704 NOTES ON HORACE. 

the anxious brow. Gr. 471. 3. — 17-19. Andromedae pater; 

i. e. Cepheus. See on Ov. M. IV. 669, 670. Procyon is the chief 
star in the constellation Cam's Minor. Its heliacal rising is about the 
twentieth of July, when the sun enters Leo. Stella is here = sidus, 
constellation. — 23. Silvani. See on Virg. G. I, 20. — 25 - 28. Cf. 
C. III. 8. 17. Seres. See on C. I. 12. 56. The Bactrians, formerly 
part of the Persian empire, were at this time subject partly to the 
Parthians and partly to a Scythian race, the Tochari. Bactra was 
their capital. Tanais, the Don, is put for the tribes on its banks. 
Discors ; i. e. quarrelling among themselves, and therefore the less 
to be feared. — 29 - 32. Prudens ; i. e. with wise forethought. 
Temporis limits exitum; "the issues of the future" (Martin). 
Nocte premit = " hath suppressed in night " (Milton). Fas here 
seems to mean " the law of reason " (Lincoln), but Ritter translates 
it : terminos a coelesti nwnine positos. Quod adest ; i. e. the present. 

— 34- 39. Aequore = alveo, which is the reading of many MSS. 
and most editors. Since one of the words is an invention, it is more 
likely to be the commoner word, alveo. The next line describes well 
the quiet flow of a river. Stirpesque raptas ; i. e. uprooted trees. 
Clamore = reverberation. — 41 - 44. Potens sui. Cf. Sir Henry 
Wotton's " Lord of himself, though not of lands." In diem ; for 
the more usual in dies = quotidie. Vixi. Lincoln aptly quotes Dry- 
den : "To-morrow do thy worst, for I have lived to-day." Occu- 
pato. Gr. 535. 2. On the passage, cf. C. II. 10. 15 foil. — 46 -48. 
Retro est = is past. Gr. 353. 2. Diffinget. See on C. I. 35. 39. 
Vexit = avexit, has borne away. — 50. Ludere. See on pati, C. I. 
1. 18. On the passage, cf. C. I. 34. 12 foil. —53-56. Manentem ; 
sc. earn. Si = sin, as often in Horace. Resigno = rescribo, I pay 
back. Cf. Festus : Resignare antiqui dicebant pro rescribere. Mea 

— involvo = I wrap myself in my (cloak of) integrity ; i. e. in con- 
tented indifference to the freaks of Fortune. Probamque — quae- 
ro = and choose honest poverty (as a bride) without a portion. — 
57-64. Meum. Gr. 404. 1. A. & S. 211, R. 8 (3) [a). Africis 
procellis. See on C. I. 1. 15, and cf. C. I. 14. 4. Votis pacisci 
= to bargain with vows. Cypriae Tyriaeque merces. Cyprus 
abounded in copper (which thence gets its name), gold, silver, and 
precious stones. It exported wines also and oil. The trade of Phoe- 
nicia was carried on to some extent through Tyre, but more largely 
through Sidon. Avaro. Cf. avaris terris, C. II. 2. 1. Biremis = 
two-oared ; usually, having two banks of oars. Geminusque Pol- 
lux is a poetical expression for Pollux cum gemino fratre. See on 
C. I. 3. 2 ; C. I. 12. 25 foil. 

ODE XXX. — This Ode appears to have been written as an epi- 



ODES. BOOK III. ODE XXX. 705 

logue to the first three books, as C. I. 1. was the prologue. It ex- 
presses the conviction, which time has justified, that, through his 
Odes, Horace had achieved an immortal name. The same just pride 
had been shown by poets before him ; as by Sappho, in a poem of 
which the first line only has been preserved, fivaaacrdal riva (frayu. 
kcu vcrrepov a/z/zecov (16 Bergk.) ; and by Ennius, in the lines : 

Nemo me lacrimis decoret nee funera fletu 
Faxit. Cur ? volito vivu' per ora virum, 

which words Virgil has made his own (G. III. 9). Propertius (III. 1), 
Ovid (Met. XV. 871 foil, quoted onOv. Trist. IV. 10. 130, page 426), 
and Martial (X. 2. 7 foil.) have all imitated Horace very closely. 
1-3. Aere ; i. e. bronze statues or memorial tablets. Regalique 

— altius = and loftier than the regal pile of the pyramids. Situ for 
mole is unusual. Impotens (sc. sui) = uncontrolled, violent. — 
7-9. Libitinam ; one of the oldest Roman deities, her worship 
dating back to the days of Numa, who identified her with Venus. 
She presided over funerals and all things pertaining to the dead. In 
her temple all things required at funerals were kept for purchase or 
hire. Usque = continually ; a sense in which it occurs only in 
poetry, and always joined to a verb. — 8. 9. Dum — pontifex; i. e. 
while the Pontifex Maximus shall, on the Ides of every month, go up 
to the Capitol to offer sacrifice, the Vestal virgins walking silently in 
the procession, the boys at the same time singing hymns. With a 
Roman this was equivalent to saying "forever." — 10-16. Dicar 

— modos. The meaning is : It will be said on the banks of my 
native river (i. e. the Aufidus. See Life), that I, a humble man made 
great, was the first to fit the Grecian strain to the Italian lyre. The 
clause qua — populorum seems naturally connected with dicar, but 
Orelli and others make it depend on ibi natus understood, and some 
on deduxisse, etc. Daunus was an ancient king of Apulia, which 
was badly watered ; hence pauper aquae, the epithet being trans- 
ferred from the country to the king. Populorum. Gr. 409. 3. 
A. & S. 220. 4 Aeolium carmen. See on C. II. 13. 24, and cf. 
C. IV. 3. 12. See also Virg. G. II. 176. Quaesitam meritis = 
earned by thy merits ; i. e. justly thy due. Mini Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 
211, R. 5 (1). Delphica lauro is the same as laurea Apollinari, 
C. IV. 2. 9. Volens = propitious. Melpomene. See on C. I. 
12. 2, and cf. C. I. 24 3. 



706 NOTES ON HORACE. 



THE ODES. Book IV. 

It is clear that Horace, after the publication of the first three books 
of his Odes, laid aside that style, or wrote in it only occasionally, and 
turned to the more serious task which employed him in his Epistles. 
Of the lighter sort of lyrics, therefore, we find but few in this book, 
and those probably inserted to fill out the volume. The moral and 
historical Odes are not surpassed by any of his earlier composi- 
tions. 

ODE II. — lulus Antonius was son of M. Antonius the triumvir. 
He was a man of letters and a poet. In B. C. 17 the Sigambri, with 
two other German tribes, crossed the Rhine and laid waste part of 
the Roman territory in Gaul. They defeated the legate Lollius, and 
this disaster was sufficient to induce Augustus to go in person to 
Gaul. At his approach the Germans withdrew into their own terri- 
tories, and, giving hostages, obtained peace. The defeat of Lollius 
had caused great consternation at Rome, and the news of the subjec- 
tion of the barbarians was hailed with proportionate joy. Augus 
tus did not return for two years to Rome, having meanwhile restored 
order in Germany, Gaul, and Spain ; but it is probable this Ode was 
written in the expectation of his return, and while the news respect- 
ing the Sigambri was still fresh, that is to say, about the end of B. C. 
16. The general impression derived from the Ode is that Antonius 
had pressed Horace to write a poem in honor of Augustus's victory 
in the style of Pindar's ernviKia, and that he very wisely declined. 
At the same time he pays Antonius the compliment of saying that he 
could celebrate Augustus's victory better than himself. 

1-4. Pindar, the greatest lyric poet of Greece, was born in or near 
Thebes, about B. C. 522, and died B. C. 442. He wrote a great number 
of odes, hymns to the gods, paeans, dithyrambs, dancing-songs, drinking- 
songs, dirges, panegyrics, etc., but none of his poems have come down 
to us except his enivLKia, or triumphal odes, the four books of which 
celebrate victories gained in the Olympian, Pythian, Nemean, and 
Isthmian games. lule. Virgil makes this name a trisyllable^ after 
the Greek. The maternal grandmother of Antonius was Julia, one 
of the family of the Caesars. For the story of Daedalus and Icarus 
see Ov. M. VIII. 183 foil, and Virg. A. VI. 14 foil. Pennis. Gr. 
419. II. A. & S. 245. II. 1. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 252. Ponto Cf. 
Icarus Jluctibus, C. I. 1. 15. — 6-8. Notas = consuetas. Cf. C. I. 
2. 10 ; Virg. A. VI. 221 ; and Tacitus, Agric. 18 : nota vada. Aluere 
= have raised. Immensus = " unconfined ; transcending the ordi- 



ODES. BOOK IV. ODE II. 707 

nary limits of poetic license" (Lincoln). Osborne translates : " Pindar 
foams and rolls on, unconfined, with his mighty depth of expression." 
Martin : " So deep-mouthed Pindar lifts his voice, and pours His 
fierce tumultuous song." — 10-12. The dithyramb us, of which 
word the etymology is uncertain, was a song in honor of Bacchus, 
and sung at his festivals. It was wild and enthusiastic in its charac- 
ter. Nova verba signifies words coined for the occasion, as was 
common, and to be expected from the nature of the poetry, of which the 
metre seemed to a Roman irregular and arbitary (lege solutis). A 
few fragments remain of dithyrambic poems by Pindar. — 13 - 16. 
These verses refer to Pindar's hymns in honor of gods and heroes. 
See on v. 1. He may have written on the victory of Pirithous (see 
on Virg. A. VI. 393, 601, and cf. C. III. 4. 80) over the Centaurs, 
and that of Bellerophon over the Chimaera. See on Virg. A. VI. 288. 
On sanguinem, cf. C. II. 20. 6. Justa ; because the Centaurs had 
carried off Hippodamia, the bride of Pirithous. — 17 - 20. This 
stanza refers to the emviiaa. See on v. 1. Elea — coelestes. See on 
C. I. 1. 5, 6 and Virg. G. I. 59. The chariot-race and boxing were 
the chief features of these games. Signis = statues. Gr. 417. 2. 3). 
A. & S. 256, R. 5 [&), where for "never" read "very rarely." — 21- 
24. This stanza refers to the dprjvoc, or dirges, of Pindar. Onflebili, 
here used actively, cf. C. I. 24. 9, where it is used passively. Spon- 
sae. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 2. Moresque aureos = and 
his golden virtues. Cf. auream mediocritatem, C. II. 10. 5. The 
metaphor is a familiar one in all languages. So educit in astra = 
extols to the stars. Cf. Virg. E. V. 51, 52 ; A. III. 158 ; A. IV. 322, 
etc. Nigroque — Oreo ; i. e. saves his name from oblivion. See on 
C. I. 24. 18. — 25 - 32. Multa eyenum = a strong breeze lifts the 
swan of Dirce ; i. e. Pindar. Dirce was a fountain near Thebes. Cf. 
Ov. M. II. 239. On the swan as a bird of song, cf. C. IV. 3. 20 ; 
Ov. M. V. 387 ; Virg. E. IX. 29 ; A. I. 398. For this reason it was 
sacred to Apollo (Cicero, Tusc. I. 30). Ritter gives cygnus when the 
penult is long, as here ; eyenus when it is short, as in the next Ode. 
Mons Matinus was in Apulia. On uvidi, cf. C. III. 29. 6. Ripas ; 
the banks (of the Anio). Plurimum ; with laborem. Operosa. 
See remarks on the Odes, in Life. Fingo corresponds to nXdrra), 
which the Greeks applied especially to the making of honey. — 33 - 
36. Majore — plectro; i. e. a poet of higher strain. "But thou 
. . . with bolder hand the echoing strings shalt sweep " (Martin). 
Feroces ; because they had hanged the Roman officers who came to 
collect their tribute. The clivus sacer was a declivity between the 
Via Sacra and the Forum, down which the triumphal processions 
passed. A certain number of prisoners usually walked behind the 
victor, and when the procession reached a certain point in the Forum, 



708 NOTES ON HORACE. 

they were carried off to prison and strangled. Cf. Ep. VII. 8. 
Fronde ; i. e. laurel. The Sygambri (Sug-, Sig-, Syc-, or Sic-am- 
bri) were a powerful tribe in Germany, between the Rhine and the 
Luppia, now the Lippe. — 39, 40. In aurum priscum = to their 
ancient gold ; i. e. the golden age. See on Ov. M. I. 89 foil. Cf. 
Milton: "Time will run back, and fetch the age of gold." — 44 A 
justitium had been ordered by the senate ; i. e. a suspension of the 
courts and of business generally. Litibus. Gr. 419. III. A. & S. 
213, R. 5 (4). — 46-48. Sol = dies. Felix may refer either to sol 
or to the subject of canam. — 49 - 51. Triumphus is addressed as 
a divinity. Horace says ; As thou marchest, we will shout thus thy 
name, Io Triumphe ! and again, Io Triumphe ! Civitas omnis = 
the whole city (of us) ; all we citizens. — 53 - 60. Te. lulus was 
rich. Me — vitulus. Cf. C. II. 17.32. Juvenescit =juvencus 
fit. Vota ; sc. solvenda. Fronte — ortum = imitating with its 
forehead the crescent fires of the moon when she brings back her 
third rising ; i. e. its young horns curved like the new moon. Duxit 
= contracted, received. Videri. Cf. major videri, Virg. A. VI. 49. 
Cetera. Gr. 380. 2. A. & S. 234. II. R. 3. 

ODE III. — The publication of his three books of Odes had 
doubtless established Horace in the high position he here asserts as 
Romanae fidicen lyrae ; and when, after several years' silence, he pro- 
duced the Carmen Seculare in B. C. 1 7, it was received probably with 
so much favor as to draw forth this Ode. It is an address to the 
Muse, gratefully attributing to her all his success. 

1-4. Melpomene. See on C. I. 12. 2. Nascentem = at his 
birth. The Isthmian games were celebrated every third year, on the 
Isthmus of Corinth, and, like the Olympian games, were attended by 
all the Greek states. Clarabit = shall make famous ; a sense not 
found elsewhere. — 5 - 8. Curru — Achaico may refer to the Olym- 
pian chariot-races (cf. C. I. I. 3), or the Greek games generally may 
be meant. Achaico is often = Graeco. Deliis foliis is like Delphica 
lauro, C. III. 30. 15 and laurea Apollinari, C. IV. 2. 9. Cf. v. 35, pre- 
ceding Ode. Quod contuderit = because he has crushed. Gr. 520. 
II. A. & S. 266. 3. Capitolio = the Capitol ; where the triumphal 
procession ended, and the victor returned thanks to Jove in his tem- 
ple. — 10 - 12. Aquae ; i. e. the Anio. He says the waters that flow 
past Tibur and the leafy groves shall make him glorious with the song 
of Lesbos, which he practices by the stream and in the grove. Cf. C. 
I. 1. 34 ; III. 30. 13, etc. Comae. Ovid, Virgil, Tibullus, and other 
poets use the same metaphor. — 16. See Introd. and Life. Cf. C. II. 
20. 4. —17-20. Testudinis aureae = xP va ~eas cpoppiyyos (Pin- 
dar, Pyth. I. 1). See on C. I. 10. 6. Fieri. The singular is not 



ODES. BOOK IV. ODE IV. 709 

common. See on Ov. M. V. Introd. Donatura = q:iae donare vales. 
Cycni. See on v. 25, preceding Ode. — 21 - 24. Muneris. Gr. 
402. 1. A. & S. 2ii, R. 8 (3). Fidicen; predicate nominative with 
monstror. Spiro ; i. e. am inspired as a poet. Tuum. Gr. 404. 1. 
A. &S. 211, R. 8 (3) (a). 

ODE IV. — The Vindelici were a tribe whose territories lay be- 
tween the Danube and the Lake of Constanz, comprising the greater 
part of modern Bavaria and Suabia, and some part of the Tyrol. The 
Raeti lay to the south of the Vindelici, and reached to Lake Como on 
the south. These tribes, whom the historians describe as very fierce 
and warlike, commenced a system of predatory incursions into Cis- 
alpine Gaul, in which they appear to have practised the greatest 
atrocities. Augustus was at this time (B. C. 16-15) m Transalpine 
Gaul, and Tiberius was with him. Drusus, his step-son, and younger 
brother of Tiberius, was Quaestor at Rome, and in his twenty-third 
year. He was required by Augustus to take the field against the 
offending tribes, whom he met under the Tridentine Alps and de- 
feated signally. But, though driven from Italy, they continued their 
attacks upon Gaul, and Tiberius was accordingly sent by Augustus 
with more troops to his brother's assistance, and they between them 
effectually humbled the tribes, whose territories were constituted a 
Roman province. From C. IV. 14. 34-38, we infer that the war was 
brought to an end in August, B. C. 15, on the anniversary of the cap- 
ture of Alexandria by Augustus, B. C. 30 (see C. I. 37. Introd.). 
In honor of these victories Horace wrote this Ode and Ode XIV., 
the one more expressly to celebrate the name of Drusus, the other of 
Tiberius. 

1. Qualem. This comparison extends through v. 16. The cor- 
relative talem is understood with Drusum, v. 18. The order of trans- 
lation is : Qnaletn olim juventas et patrhis vigor propulit nido inscium 
labonim alitem ministrum fulminis, cut Juppiter, rex deorum, permisit 
regnum in vagas aves, expertus (eum) Jideletn in flavo Ganymede, ver- 
nique venti, nimbis jam remotis, docuere paventem insolitos nisus ; mox 
vividus impetus demisit (eum) hostem . . . (talem) Vindelici videre Dru- 
sum, etc. Virgil calls the eagle Jovis armiger, A. V. 255. — 4. In 
= in the case of. Cf. in hoste, Virg. A. II. 390. Ganymede. See 
on Virg. A. I. 28, and cf. A. V. 252 foil. Flavo =pulchro ; like 
gavdos 5. Olim. See on C. II. 10. 17. Patrius vigor = heredi- 
tary strength. Some take patrius — inscium to mean that the parent 
bird drives him from the nest that he may learn to fly. — 10 - 12. 
Vividus impetus = a quick instinct. Reluctantes = writhing. 
For egit and the other perfects see Gr. 471. 3. —14-16. Ab — de- 
pulsum ; i. e. just weaned. Depulsus a lacte (Virg. E. VII. 15) and de- 



710 NOTES ON HORACE. 

pulsus ab ubere are both common phrases, and Horace here combines 
them. Some, to get rid of the tautology, have made ubere an adjec- 
tive with lacte, which seems to us much worse than the tautology. 
Dillenb. who had adopted this view, gives it up in his last edition 
(i860) for the one we have preferred. Ritter refers fulvae — ubere to 
capreae : as the weaned goat sees the weaned lion. It is hardly pos- 
sible that critical ingenuity will devise a worse rendering than that. 
— 18. Drusum. Nero Claudius Drusus was the son of Tiberius 
Claudius Nero and Livia, who was divorced by Nero and married to 
Augustus. He was a great favorite of Augustus, and Velleius Pater- 
culus (II. 97) says that he possessed every natural endowment carried 
by culture to perfection. Quibus. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). 
— 19-21. Unde deductus depends on quaerere. The whole 
passage quibus — omnia is awkward and prosaic, and may, as some 
critics think, be an interpolation. Dillenb. thinks that, if it is bad, 
Horace himself should bear the blame of it, and not some inno- 
cent copyist or scholiast. Ritter says : est digressio et lyrico poeta 
digna et huic loco apte inserviens. Amazonia. See on Virg. A. 
I. 490. — 22. Sed is commonly used after digressions to recover the 
thread of the subject— 25. Mens refers to the h~ad, indoles to the 
heart. — 28. Nerones; Drusus and his brother, Tiberius Claudius 
Nero. The former was not born until three months after Livia mar- 
ried Augustus. — 29. Horace probably had in mind the words of 
Euripides (Fr. Alcm. 7) : 

i(T&ka>v an dvdpaJv eadXa ylyvearOai rk<va, 
kcikcov §' ojxoia rfj (pixrei rfj rov irarpos. 

Fortibus et bonis (Gr. 425. 3. 4). A. & S. 246, R. 1) corresponds 
to the common Greek expression, which it is so difficult to render, 
KaKois Kayadols. Horace does not refer to the father of these youths, 
who was a worthless person, but generally to their family, the Claudia 
gens, among whom were many persons of distinction. They were 
divided into a patrician and a plebeian branch. To the latter be- 
longed the Marcelli. See on C. I. 12. 46. — 33. Doctrina — insi- 
tam = " Yet training quickens power inborn " (Martin). — 35. 
Utcumque = quandocumque, or (Dillenb.) simul ac. — 36. Bene 
nata — bonammdolem. Culpae = vitia. — 37. Neronibus. Clau- 
dius Nero, who was of the same family as Tiberius and Drusus, 
defeated and slew Hasdrubal, when he was coming to the help of 
Hannibal, B. C. 207, on the banks of the Metaurus, a river in the 
north of Italy. Hannibal had been nearly eleven years in Italy, 
and had met with few reverses, but after his brother's defeat his cause 
failed, and, though he remained four years longer in Italy, it was far 
away in the mountains of the south, and the Romans ceased to be 



ODES. BOOK IV. ODE IV. 711 

harassed by him. — 41. Adorea A dor was a coarse grain, called 
by the Greeks £eia, but the name was applied to grain in general, and 
in the form adorea signified the supply of corn given to soldiers after 
a victory, and hence victory 7 itself. — 42. Dims. This epithet is thrice 
applied by Horace to Hannibal, -whom with reason the Romans held 
in greater respect than any other enemy they ever had. Ut = ever 
since ; as in Ep. VII. 19. — 43. Taedas ; not torches, but a blazing 
forest of pines. Eurus. Cf. the picture in Virg. A. II. 417, 418. — 
45-48. Post hoc; i. e. after the victory of Claudius. Usque = 
continually. Rectos = re-established ; i. e. their statues, thrown 
down by the enemy, were set up again. — 49 - 53. Perfidus is the 
pet epithet for Hannibal with the Roman writers. Sectamur — tri- 
umphus = We are pushing on and pursuing those whom to evade 
and to escape is our noblest triumph. There is often some difficulty 
in translating ultro. Uls is an old preposition involving the same 
root as Me, and signifying " on the other side of," opposed to cis. 
Ultro signifies to a place beyond, as ultra at a place beyond. If ultro, 
therefore, ever means " voluntarily," it is not as involving the root 
vol of volo, but as implying forwardness to do what one is not obliged 
or asked to do. Cf. Livy, XXVII. 51. — 53 - 56. Gens — aequori- 
bus. Aeneas had just rounded the western promontory of Sicily, 
and entered the Mare Tyrrhenum, when the storm arose that drove 
him back to the coast of Africa. Cf. Virg. A. I. 67 foil. ; III. 705 foil. 
Sacra Aeneas brought with him to Rome the fire of Vesta and the 
images of the Penates publici, who were ever after worshipped there. 
They were the protectors of the city, as the Penates domestici or privati 
were of private houses, and like them were worshipped as Lares. 
Ausonias. See on Virg. G. II. 385, and cf. A. IV. 349, etc. — 58. 
Algidus was a mountain in Latium sacred to Diana, often called ni- 
valis, gelidus, etc., from its temperature. — 59. Per damna. Cf. Livy, 
XXIX. 3 : III is Romanam plebem, Mis Latium juventittem praehcisse 
majorem semper frequentioremque pro tot caesis adolescentibus subo- 
lescentem. — 61. Hydra. See on belua Lernae, Virg. A. VI. 287, 
803. — 62. Vinci dolentem = indignant at the thought of being 
beaten ; or, refusing to be beaten. Cf. metuente solvi, C. II. 2. 7. — 
63, 64. Colchi. Jason, when he went for the golden fleece, sowed 
at Colchis part of the teeth of the dragon which Cadmus had killed, 
and whose teeth he had sown at Thebes. From both sprung up 
armed men, to whom Hannibal here likens the Romans. Echion was 
one of the yr^ycvcis, earth-born, who helped Cadmus to build Thebes, 
which is therefore called after him. Cf. Ov. M. III. 50 foil. — 65. 
Merses; subjunctive with si omitted. Gr. 503. 1. A. & S. 261, R. 1. 
So luctere. — 69. Karthagini = ad Karthaginem. Gr. 379. 5. 
A. & S. 225. IV. R. 2. — 70. Superbos = exultant ; as after the 



712 NOTES ON HORACE. 

battle of Cannae. — 75, 76. Curae sagaces ; i. e. the forethought 
and sagacity of Augustus. Expediunt = carry them through. 
Acuta belli = the perils of war. Gr. 438. 5. A. & S. 205, R. 
9 0). 

ODE VII. — Who Torquatus was we have no means of deciding. 
The Ode bears a strong likeness to C. I. 4, and may very likely have 
been written about the same time, and afterwards inserted here to 
help out a volume. It contains an exhortation to present enjoyment, 
since Death is certainly at hand for all. 

2-6. Comae. See on C. IV. 3. 11. Mutat vices = undergoes 
its changes. Gr. 371. 1. 3). A. & S. 232 (1). Praetereunt; i. e. 
return within. Gratia — choros. Cf. C. I. 4. 6. The Graces were 
sometimes represented nude, sometimes with drapery. — 7. Speres. 
Gr. 492. 2. A. & S. 218, R. 2. Almum. See on Virg. G. I. 7. Cf. 
A. V. 64. — 9-12. Frigora = the cold (of winter). Zephyris = 
the breezes (of spring). Cf. C. I. 4. 1. Proterit. Cf. C. II. 18. 15. 
Simul ; sc. ac. Iners = dull ; torpid. — 13 - 16. Damna — lunae. 
Tamen shows that the changes and deteriorations of the seasons are 
meant, and celeres lunae are the quick-revolving months. Decidi- 
mus ; i. e. go to the lower world. Tullus et Ancus. See on Virg. 
A. VI. 814, 815. Horace means that not piety, nor wealth, nor power 
can bring back the dead. —17-20. An. Gr. 526. II. 2). A. & S. 
198. 11, R. (<?). Hodiernae summae; i. e. to the sum (of the past) 
which to-day completes. Amico — animo = whatever thou givest 
thine own dear self ; a literal version of §'Ckr\ tyvxfi x a p' l C €(r ^ aL - The 
meaning is : "in which you have indulged your inclination." — 21- 
22. Splendida arbitria = judgment august. Minos. ' See on Virg. 
A. VI. 432. Cf. C. II.- 13. 23. — 25-28. Hippolytus was the son 
of Theseus and Hippolyte, queen of the Amazons. He was killed 
by being thrown from his chariot while riding on the sea-shore. He 
was a favorite of Diana, who induced Aesculapius to restore him to 
life, and according to Ovid (M. XV. 543 foil.) put him under the pro- 
tection of the nymph Egeria, in the woods of Aricia, where he was 
worshipped as a god. Horace follows the earlier Greek legend. 
Lethaea. See on Virg. A. VI. 705. Theseus. See on A. VI. 
617. Pirithoo. See on C. III. 4. 80. The common story of Theseus 
and his friend is, that, both having been consigned to their punish- 
ment together, Hercules went down and delivered Theseus, leaving 
Pirithous to his fate. This may be the legend Horace follows : for 
it may be understood that Theseus pleaded for Pirithous when he 
was himself returning, but failed to obtain his release. 

ODE XIV. — The circumstances under which this Ode was written 



ODES. BOOK IV. ODE XIV. 713 

are given in the Introduction to C. 4 of this book. The common in- 
scriptions, which make it an address in honor of Augustus, sufficiently 
describe the spirit of it, though its professed purpose is to celebrate 
the part which Tiberius took in the victories over the German tribes. 
The Ode for Drusus was probably written soon after the end of the 
war, but this not till Augustus returned from Gaul, two years after- 
wards. 

4, 5. Titulos = inscriptions ; i. e. on triumphal arches and other 
monuments. Fastos ; i. e. public registers, or chronicles, called 
memores as preserving the memory of events for posterity. — 7-11. 
Quern didicere . . . quid posses. This kind of attraction is com- 
mon in Greek, and not uncommon in Plautus and Terence. Cf. Gr. 
445. 9. A. & S. 206 (6). Marte. Cf. C. II. 14. 13 ; III. 5. 24, 34, 
etc. Milite ; used collectively. Cf. Virg. A. II. 20. The Genauni 
lived between lakes Verbanus (Maggiore) and Larius (Como). The 
Breuni, another Alpine tribe, lived near the source of the Oenus 
(Inn). — 13. Plus vice simplici = with more than an even ex- 
change ; i. e. of blood. Cf. vv. 31, 32. Gr. 417. 3. A. & S. 256, R. 
6 {a). — 14. Major ; i. e. Tiberius. — 17-19. Spectandus . . . 
quantis . . . minis = worthy of admiration, with what destruction ; 
i. e. worthy of admiration for the destruction with which. It is an 
imitation of the Greek idiom davfiaaros oaois. Devota — liberae 
= hearts devoted to a freeman's death. — 20. The fourth verse of 
the Alcaic stanza is often constructed with a noun and its adjective 
in the first and last place, and corresponding in their final syllables. 
See vv. 12, 16, 20, 36, 52, and cf. other Odes. Prope is rarely used 
by the poets in comparisons. Ritter joins it with indomitas. — 21. 
Pleiadum. See on Atlantides, Virg. G. I. 221. — 23, 24. Vexare. 
See on pati, C. I. 1. 18. Ignes = the flames (of war). — 25. Tauri- 
formis is taken from the Greek ravpopopcpos, applied to the Cephisus 
by Euripides (Ion. 1261). Cf. Virg. G. IV. 371 : gemzna auratus tau- 
rino cortiua vultu Eridanus ; and A. VIII. 77 : Corniger Fluvius. 
This conception of the river-god was probably suggested by the rush 
and roar of the waters. Cf. C. IV. 9. 2 ; III. 30. 10. — 26. Dauni. 
See on C. I. 22. 14 ; III. 30. 11. — 30. Ferrata = mailed. — 31, 32. 
Metendo. Horace (like Virgil, A. X. 513, Proximo, quacque metit 
gladio) gets his metaphor from Homer (II. XI. 67), 01 6° uktt dprjrripes 
evavTLoi a\\T]\ot.(riv "Oypov iXavvoMjtv. Humum; direct object of 
stravit. Clade ; i. e. of his own men. — 34. Divos. Augustus had 
the auspkium, and his step-sons were his legati. See on C. I. 7. 27. 
Quo die. See C. I. 37. Introd. and C. IV. 4. Introd. — 39, 40- 
Laudemque — arrogavit; i. e. claimed for the wars carried on 
under thy command the glory thou didst desire. What follows is a 
compendious review of the successes of Augustus, all of which have 



714 NOTES ON HORACE. 

been noticed in these Odes. Before the present Ode was written, the 
Cantabri had been finally subdued by Agrippa ; the Parthians had 
restored the standards of Crassus and M. Antonius ; the Scythians 
had sent to ask to be taken into alliance ; the distant nations of Asia 
had done the same (see C. S. 55 foil.); the successes of Lentulus had 
checked the inroads of the tribes of the Danube (C. II. 9. 23) ; Egypt 
had long been a tributary province ; Armenia (Tigris) had been ceded 
by the Parthians ; Britain, though only threatened, had sent tokens 
of submission. Augustus was just returned from Gaul and Spain, 
where he had put down the last efforts of rebellion, having also driven 
back the German tribes (Sygambri), whose success against Lollius 
had brought a stain upon the arms of Rome (see C. IV. 2. Introd.). — 
43. Praesens. Cf. C. III. 5. 2.-45. See on Ov. M. II. 254.— 
47 - 51. Beluosus ; like 7ro\vKr)rr)s, TroKvOpefifioiP. Milton (Lycidas) 
calls the sea " the monstrous world." Britannis. Cf. C. I. 35. 30 ; 
III. 5. 3. Non — Galliae. Cf. Caesar, B. G. VI. 14 : In primis 
hoc volunt persuadere {Druidae) non interire animos sed ab aliis post 
mortem transire ad alios, atque hoc maxime ad virtutem excitari putant, 
metu mortis neglecto. Sygambri. See on C. IV. 2. 36. 



THE SECULAR HYMN. 

When Augustus had completed the period of ten years for which 
the imperial power was at first placed in his hands (B. C. 27-17) he 
determined to celebrate his successes at home and abroad by an ex- 
traordinary festival, and he took as his model the Ludi Tarentini or 
Taurii, which had in former times been observed as a means of propi- 
tiating the infernal deities, Dis and Proserpina, on occasions of great 
public calamities. It does not appear that this festival ever was held 
at regular intervals, nor had the name Ludi Seculares been used until 
now. The Quindecimviri were ordered to consult the Sibylline 
books, and they reported, no doubt as they were desired, that the time 
was come for the repetition of this great national festival, and the de- 
tails of it were laid down as from the commands of the oracle in a set 
of Greek hexameters, composed of course for the occasion. 

The Hymn was sung at the most solemn part of the festival, while 
the Emperor was in person offering sacrifice to the Parcae at the sec- 
ond hour of the night, at the river-side, upon three altars erected for 
the purpose. The chorus consisted of twenty-seven boys and as 
many girls of noble birth, well trained for the occasion. 



THE SECULAR HYMN. 715 

Steiner, who has been followed by Orelli, Dillenburger, and others, 
thinks that the Hymn was sung by the two choirs, as follows : 

Stanzas 1 and 2, the Proodus, by the boys and girls together. 



Stanza 3 by the boys 



« 4 « 


" girls 


" 5 " 


" boys 


« 6 " 


" girls 


" 7 " 


" boys 


" 8 " 


" girls 



Stanza 10 by the boys 



II " 


" girls 


12 " 


" boys 


13" 


" girls 


14" 


" boys 


15" 


" girls 



Stanza 9, the Mesodus, 

Verses 1, 2 by the boys 

" 3, 4 " " girls 



•Stanzas 16- 19, the Epodus, by the boys and girls together. 

We think it more probable that, as Ritter suggests, the 9th stanza 
was sung by the boys and girls together. It should be stated that 
the editors differ widely in this assigning of the parts to the choirs, 
and some, like Macleane, think that no accurate division can be 
made. 

1, 2. Silvarum. Gr. 399. 2. 2) (3). A. & S. 213, R. 5 (3). De- 
cus applies to both deities. — 5. Sibyllini — versus. See Introd. 
These were oracular books written, it is conjectured, on palm-leaves, 
in Greek verse, which were kept in the Capitol and consulted on ex- 
traordinary occasions. The leaves taken at random were supposed 
to give the directions required. They were under the care of certain 
persons, at this time fifteen in number {quindecimviri, v. 70), who 
alone had power to consult them. The books were said originally to 
have been sold to Tarquinius Superbus by an old woman, and to have 
been three in number. They were burnt with the Capitol, B. C. 82, 
but collections of ese verses having accumulated in various towns 
of Italy, they were got together and deposited in the same building, 
and used as before. — 6. See Introd. — 7. Colles; the seven hills 
of Rome, which were Coelius, Esquilinus, Viminalis, Quirinalis, 
Capitolinus, Palatinus, Aventinus. — 9. Alme Sol = O Sun the 
nurturer. See on Virg. G. I. 7. — 10. Aliusque et idem ; differ- 
ent in semblance, but in reality the same. Cf. Racine, Poem. Relig. 
cant. I : Astre tonjoicrs. le meme, astre toujours nouveau. — 11. Possis. 
Gr.488. 1. A.&S.260, R.6.— 13-16. Rite — lenis = thou whose 
office it is gently to bring babes to the birth in due season. Rite = 
according to thy province and functions. ElXeidvui, the Greek name 
for Here and Artemis, or more properly in the plural number for 
their attendants, when presiding at the delivery of women, is repre- 
sented by the Latin Liccina, " quae in lucem profert" which title also 
was given indiscriminately to Juno and Diana. The title Genitalis 
does not occur elsewhere in this sense, but appears to be a version 
of the Greek VevervWls, which was applied to Aphrodite as well as 
Artemis and her attendants. Cf. Virg. E. IV. 10. Probas = mavis. 



7l6 NOTES ON HORACE. 

— 18 - 20. In B. C. 18, the year before this Ode was written, a law 
was passed which, after Augustus, was called Lex Julia de Maritandis 
Ordinibus, its object being the regulation and promotion of marriages. 
Prolis. See on silvarum, v. i. — 21-24. The notion that the 
Secular Games were celebrated every no years, the length of a secu- 
hcm as measured by the Etruscans, was a fiction invented probably at 
this time. There is no trace or probability of their having been so 
celebrated either before or after Augustus. They lasted three days 
and nights. They were celebrated by Claudius, A. D. 47, and again 
by Domitian, A. D. 88. Frequentes = attended by crowds. — 25 - 
28. Vosque — servat = Ye too who are true to declare, O Parcae, 
that which hath been once decreed, and which the steadfast order of 
events is confirming (that is, the power of Rome). The orders of the 
oracle (see Introd.) directed a special sacrifice of lambs and goats 
novToyovois Moipms (sea-born Fates), which was the Greek name of 
the Parcae, who, as some said, were the daughters of Oceanus and 
Ge, the earth. Semel= once for all ( Kadcnvat- )• The Parcae could not 
but be true exponents of the decrees (fata) of Jove, since to them 
their execution was intrusted. Cf. C. II. 16. 39. There may be some 
inconsistency in asking them to give good fates to Rome, since they 
could only execute ministerially quod semel dictum est ; but such con- 
fusion is common. — 31. Fetus ; applied to the productions of the 
earth, as in Virg. G. I. 55 ; II. 390 ; Cicero, Or. II. 30, etc. — 33. 
Cf. C. II. 10. 20. There was a statue of Apollo in his temple on the 
promontory near Actium, with bent bow and fierce aspect. See Virg. 
A. III. 275. To this god Augustus attributed his success in the bat- 
tle with M. Antonius ; and on his return to Rome he built a temple 
to Apollo of Actium on Mons Palatinus and set up a statue of the 
god, but in a different character, with the lyre in one hand and the 
plectrum in the other. — 35. Diana, as the moon, is often represented 
in her chariot, drawn by two horses, and with a small crescent on her 
forehead. — 37. Vestrum. Cf. Virg. A. III. 94 ; IV. 345 j VI. 59, 
etc. — 39. Pars ; in apposition with turmae. — 41 - 44. Cui ; sc. 
parti. Fraude = injury. Cf. Virg. A. II. 633. Patriae. Gr. 391. 
2. 4) (3). A. & S. 222, R. 2 (a). Relictis. Gr. 417. 2. A. & S. 256, 
R. 5 (a). — 47, 48. Remque — omne = wealth and offspring and 
every honor. — 49. Veneratur = venerando precatur. The oracle 
required that milk-white bulls should be offered by day to Zeus. — 
50 -52. Sanguis; i. e. Augustus. See on C. II. 20. 6. Bellante 
— hostem = Mightier than his enemy in the fight, but merciful when 
he is fallen. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 853. — 54. Albanas secures ; i. e. 
the Roman fasces. Cf. Albanique patres, Virg. A. I. 7, and see A. I. 
270 foil. — 55; Responsa; i.e. to their offers of submission and 
petitions for friendship. — 56. Indi. See on C. I. 12. 53. — 57 - 60. 



THE SECULAR HYMN. 717 

This group occurs nearly in the same combination in C. I. 24. 6. 
Fides represents honesty, good faith, and is called in the above place 
Jiistitiae soror. Honos has nothing to do with what we call honor 
in the sense of honesty (fides), but represents Gloria. Virtus is 
most usually represented in a military character, as Fortitudo ; but 
the name embraced all moral courage and steadfastness in well-doing, 
with which military courage was closely associated in the mind of a 
Roman. Pudor, or Pudicitia, represents conjugal fidelity. Juvenal 
speaks of her especially as having left the earth at the close of the 
reign of Saturn. But all these virtues are said to have left the earth 
with Astraea at the close of the golden age, and their return is intended 
to represent the return of that age. Copia, whose horn was most 
properly the symbol of Fortune, but was also given to many other 
divinities, as Fides, Felicitas, Concordia, Honos, etc., was herself repre- 
sented under the forms of Abundantia and Annona, the latter signify- 
ing the supply of corn for consumption in the city. Cornu limits 
beata. — 61 - 64. See on Virg. E. V. 35. Et — arcu seems to con- 
tradict the prayer in v. 33 ; but the bow of Apollo did not always in- 
spire dread. He is sometimes represented with this unstrung at his 
back, and the lyre and plectrum in his hands ; and it is uncertain 
whether he did not so appear in the statue above referred to. Ca- 
menis. In some ancient rilievi and paintings Apollo is represented 
as seated in the midst of the nine Muses, who are all paying attention 
to him. Qui — artus. Apollo's attribute as the healer is one of the 
oldest that was attached to him, and is most commonly exhibited in 
his statues and other representations. It is symbolized by the ser- 
pent which always attends the figures of Salus, Aesculapius, and 
others connected with the healing art. Ovid makes him say (M. I. 

521): — 

Inventum medicina metim est ; opiferque per orbem 
Dicor, et herbarum subjecta potentia nobis. 

— 65-68. See on v. 33. Felix — aevum = May he prolong this hap- 
py age to another and another lustrum, and ever to a happier. It is com- 
mon with Horace to put an adjective and its noun at the two extremes 
of a sentence. — 69 - 72. Diana had a temple on Mons Averrtinus and 
on Algidus. See on C. IV. 4. 58. From this stanza it has been 
assumed by some that the quindecimviri (see on v. 5) took part in the 
singing, which is not very probable. Their number, originally two, 
was increased to ten about one hundred and fifty years after the estab- 
lishment of the Republic, and raised to fifteen either by Sulla or 
Julius Caesar. Puerorum ; the whole choir of boys and girls. — 
73 - 76. The whole choir declare their confidence that the prayers 
they have offered have been heard by Jove and all the gods. The 
clause haec — cunctos is in apposition with spem. Gr. 553. II. 



718 NOTES ON HORACE. 



THE EPODES. 

The word Epode, from 'E7ra>oo?, an additional song, was applied at 
first to the closing part of a lyric poem, succeeding the Strophe and 
Antistrophe. It next came to mean a lyric made up of alternate iam- 
bic trimeters and dimeters. Such were the Epodes of Archilochus, 
and to the same class belong most of Horace's' Epodes. They were 
probably his earliest lyrical compositions, having been published, 
according to the best authorities, about B. C. 724. 

EPODE II. — Horace, meaning to write on the praises of the 
country, put his poem into the shape of a rhapsody by a money- 
getting usurer, who, after reciting the blessings of a country life, and 
sighing for the enjoyment of them, resolving to throw up his business, 
and persuading himself that he desires nothing so much as retirement 
and a humble life, finds habit too strong for him, and falls back 
upon the sordid pursuits which, after all, are most congenial to him. 
Though the greater part of the speech must be admitted to be rather 
out of keeping with the supposed speaker, yet the picture is very 
beautiful, and the moral true. 

2-7. Cf. Virg. G. II. 458 foil. Ut — mortalium ; i. e. in the golden 
age. Exercet. Cf. Virg. G. I. 99 ; II. 356. Fenore. A usurer is 
speaking. Classico (sc. signo) ; i. e. the trumpet. Mare. Gr. 371. 
3. 1). A. & S. 232 (2) N. 1. — 9-14. Ergo; i. e. since he is free 
from the cares just mentioned. Propagine. See on Virg. G. II. 26. 
Maritat. See on C. II. 15. 4. Cf. Milton : "They led the vine To 
wed her elm " ; etc. Reducta = retired. Some make it = curva, 
winding. Cf. Virg. A. I. 161. Inutilesque — inserit. Cf. Virg. 
G. II. 73 foil, and note ramis felicibus, v. 81. — 16. Infirmas is 
merely an ornamental epithet. So Ovid : pecore infirmo. — 17. Vel 
is here copulative, not disjunctive. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 769. Et would 
have made the sentence too much of a climax, especially with the 
exclamation, Ut gaudet, etc. — 20 - 22. Purpurae. Gr. 385. 5. 
A. & S. 223, R. 2 {b). Priape. See on Virg. E. VII. 33. Silvane. 
See on Virg. G. I. 20. Strictly the tutor finium was the god Ter- 
minus. — 24 - 26. Tenaci = matted ; or, as some make it, tenacious, 
tough-rooted. Queruntur ; like gemere, Virg. E. I. 59. — 29. Hi- 
bernus annus ; i. e. the winter. Cf. formosissimus annus, Virg. E. 
III. 57 and frigidus annus t A. VI. 311. — 31. Multa cane = many 
a dog. The feminine is often used of hunting-dogs. — 32-36. 
Amites were forked stakes on which the nets were stretched. 
Plagae were strong nets for large beasts ; retia, finer pnes for birds 



THE EPODES. EPODE II. 719 

and fish ; retia rara, those with wide meshes used only for birds. 
Cf. C. I. 1. 28 and Virg. A. IV. 131. Edacibus refers to their dep- 
redations on the corn. Advenam = foreign ; i. e. coming from 
foreign lands in the winter. Laqueo ; instrumental ablative. — 37. 
Malarum . . . quas curas. Gr. 445. 9. A. & S. 206 (3) {b). — 39. 
Quodsi is emphatic : if, therefore, etc. The conditional clause ex- 
tends to v. 49. In partem = on her part. — 41-48. Horace often 
speaks of the domestic virtues of the Sabines and Apulians. See 
Life. Pernicis = patient, steadfast ; being compounded of per and 
nitor. Sacrum — focum. The fireplace was sacred to the Lares. 
The wood must be old that it might not smoke, like that which 
plagued the travellers at Trevicum (S. I. 5. 80). The focus was either 
a fixture of stone or brick, in which case it was synonymous with cami- 
nus, or it was movable and made of bronze, and then it was usually 
called focuhts. In either case it was a wide and shallow receptacle 
for wood or charcoal, the smoke of which found its way out as best it 
could. See on Virg. E. VII. 50. Horna — dolio, i. e. poor wine 
of that year, which had not been bottled for keeping, but was drawn 
directly from the dolium. Like the other parts of this description, this 
is meant to convey the notion of primitive simplicity. Inemptas. 
So Virg. G. IV. 133 : dapibus mensas onerabat inemptis. — 49-55. 
The oysters of the Lucrine lake (see on Virg. G. II. 161) were famous. 
The rhombus was probably the turbot. The scarus, whatever it 
may have been, is said by Pliny to have abounded most in the Car- 
pathian Sea. The storm, therefore, must come from the east that 
should drive it to the coast of Italy. What bird is meant by Afra 
avis we cannot tell. The Greeks called them fi€\eaypi8as. Martial 
(III. 58. 15) speaks of Nu??iidicae guttatae (i. e. speckled), which seems 
to be the same bird, and answers to the appearance of the guinea- 
fowl. The attagen is usually said to be the moor-fowl. Martial says 
it was one of their most delicious birds (XIII. 61). It is repeatedly 
mentioned by Aristophanes. Aristotle, in his History of Animals, 
numbers it among kovkttikol opviBes, birds which do not fly high. 
Jucundior. Gr. 443. A. & S. 205, R. 15 {a): — 59, 60. The 
Terminalia took place in the early spring (February 23), and lambs 
were offered to Terminus, the god who protected boundaries. Plu- 
tarch says that sheep rescued from the jaws of the wolf were thought 
to be better flavored than others. The thrifty would eat them for 
economy. That is the idea Horace means to convey. — 61. Ut = 
how ; as in v. 19. — 65, 66. Vernas ; i. c. slaves born on the owner's 
estate. There was a hearth near which the images of the Lares were 
placed, in the centre of the atrium, the entrance-room, and round it 
the slaves had their supper. Reuidentes means shining by the light 
of the fire. — 67 - 70. Alphius. A usurer of this name is mentioned 



720 NOTES ON HORACE. 

by Columella, as an authority on the subject of bad debts. Redigere 
is the technical word for getting in money out on loan, and ponere for 
putting it out, as mrafiaWeiv, fidWeiv, riOepat. The settling days 
at Rome were the Kalends, Nones, and Ides. Horace says that 
Alphius delivered the foregoing speech when he had made up his 
mind to turn farmer immediately, and that with this view he got in all 
his money on the Ides (the middle of the month), but when the next 
Kalends came (the first of the month) he could not resist the temp- 
tation to put it out again. 

EPODE VII. — This Epode appears to have been written when 
some fresh war was breaking out. It may have been the last war 
between Augustus and M. Antonius, which ended in the battle of 
Actium and the taking of Alexandria, but it is not easy to decide. 

1-3. Dexteris. See on dextera, C. I. 2. 3. Conditi = (lately) 
sheathed. Campis — Neptuno = terra marique. — 7 - 10. See C. 
III. 24. 1. What Horace means to say is, " The blood that has been 
spilt in these civil wars has been shed, not for the destruction of 
Carthage, as in the war that Scipio led, or that the Briton might be 
led in chains, as he was by Julius Caesar, but for the destruction of 
Rome herself." Intactus ; i. e. untouched, till Julius Caesar invaded 
them and carried away prisoners, many of whom walked in his tri- 
umph. The first time after Caesar's expeditions that a Roman army 
invaded Britain was in the expedition of Claudius, A. D. 43. On 
descenderet — via, see on C. IV. 2. 35. — 11, 12. Dispar; sc. 
genus. Feris agrees with lupis and leonibus and = fierce (though 
they be). — 13. Vis acrior seems to be absolute, not comparative 
with furor, and = some irresistible force ; like 9eov /3ta — 19, 20. 
Ut = <?.*• quo (tempore). Sacer ; i. e. expiandus, or (Dillenb.) per- 
niciosus. Cf. Virg. A. III. 57. On the whole passage, cf. Virg. G. 
I. 501 foil. 

EPODE XIII. — This Ode is like C. I. 9, a convivial song, writ- 
ten in winter. It is probably an imitation of some Greek lyric. 

1. Contraxit = has shut in. — 2. Jovem. See on Ov. M. II. 
377. Siluae ; instead of silvae, for the sake of the measure. Gr. 
669. III. A. & S. 306. 2. — 3. Threicio ; because Thrace was north 
of Greece. — 4. Occasionem de die ; i. e. the gifts of the present. 
Die is to-day as opposed to to-morrow, not, as some make it, "this 
stormy day." Dumque — genua. The strength of an active man 
lies very much in his legs, and so they are put for his strength, as in 
Psalms, cxlvii. 10. — 5. Obducta . . . fronte = clouded brow. 
Senectus is nowhere else used as = melancholy, though senium 
sometimes is. — 6. Tu; i. e. the feast-master. See on C. I. 4. 18. 



THE EPODES. EPODE XVI. 72 I 

Sextns Manlius Torquatus was consul, B. C. 55, when Horace was 
born. — 7. Cf. C. I. 9. 9. — 8 - 10. In sedem ; i. e. in pristinum 
statum. Achaemenio . . . nardo. See on C. III. 1. 44. Fide 
Cyllenea See on C. I. 10. 6 and Virg. G. I. 337. Sollicitudini- 
bus. Gr. 425. 2. 2). A. & S. 251 and N. — 11-14; Centaurus ; 
i. e. Cheiron, the instructor of Achilles (alumno) and other heroes. 
Juvenal (VII. 210) describes Achilles as a big boy at school : Metuens 
virgae jam grandis Achilles Cantabat patriis in montifats ; but grandis 
has not that meaning here, though some have supposed it has. The- 
tide. See on Virg. E. IV. 32 ; G. I. 399. Assaraci. See on Virg. 
A. I. 284. Scamandri. See on Xanthus, Virg. A. I. 473. Homer 
took a more heroic view of the dimensions of the river Scamander, 
which was peyas noTapos (SaOvdiurjs (II. XX. 73). Simois. See on 
Virg. A. I. 100. —15-18. Tibi. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 
and N. Certo subtemine ; i. e. by an unalterable destiny. Parcae. 
See on Virg. E. IV. 47. Mater ; i. e. Thetis. Alloquiis = conso- 
lations ; in apposition with vino cantuque. There is no other instance 
of alloqichcm except with reference to conversation. But Horace may 
have imitated the use of TrapapvOiov, napTjyopla, which were applied, 
in a derived sense, to anything that gave relief to sorrow. 

EPODE XVI. — This Ode is written with great care, and was 
very likely one of those compositions by which Horace brought him- 
self into public notice. Probably it was written at the outbreak of 
the Perusian war, B. C. 41. Horace mourns over the civil wars, 
and proposes that all good citizens shall migrate to the Fortunate 
Islands. 

1. Altera; the last being that of Sulla, which ended about forty 
years before. — 2. Suis et ipsa would be suis ipsius in prose. — 3 - 
8. Marsi ; in allusion to the Social or Marsic war, B. C. 90 - 88. 
See on C. II. 20. 18. Porsena was King of Clusium in Etruria. 
He espoused the cause of Tarquinius Superbus, and attacked Rome 
with a large army. All the modern writers on Roman history believe 
that he reduced the city to submission and took from her all the ter- 
ritory she had obtained north of the Tiber. Aemula — Capuae. 
After the battle of Cannae, Hannibal established himself in Capua, 
and Livy (XXIII. 6) relates a boasting speech of the Campanians, — 
how they expected that Hannibal, when he withdrew to Carthage, 
would leave Rome a wreck and the power over Italy in the hands of 
Capua. They also sent ambassadors to Rome, and demanded, as a 
condition of their assistance, that one of the consuls should always 
be a Campanian. Five years afterwards the Romans took the town, 
and dealt very severely with it. Spartacus was a Thracian gladiator, 
the leader in the Servile War, B. C. 73-71. The Allobroges, whose 
46 



722 NOTES ON HORACE. 

country lay on the left bank of the Rhone, had ambassadors at Rome 
at the time of Catiline's conspiracy, praying for redress for certain 
grievances. These men were tampered with by the conspirators, and 
promised to forward their designs, which, soon repenting, they be- 
trayed, and became the principal witnesses against the conspirators 
(Sallust, Catil. 41 ; Cic. in Catil. III. 2-4). This explains Horace's 
meaning. Two years afterwards these people, having broken out in 
war and invaded Gallia Narbonensis, were defeated by C. Pomptinus, 
governor of that province. Caerulea = blue-eyed. Germania; i. e. 
the Cimbri and Teutones, conquered by Marius, B. C. 101. Pa- 
rentibus abominatus ; like matribus detestata, C. I. 1. 24. Some 
make parentibus = by our fathers. — 9. Jmpia — aetas = we, an 
impious race of doomed (accursed) blood, shall ruin. The object of 
perdemus is the antecedent of the relative clause quam — Hannibal. 
— 11. Insistere is followed by the accusative case sometimes, par- 
ticularly when it implies motion, as insistere viam, which peculiarity 
is found in the Greek Kade^ofiai. It more usually governs the dative, 
or is followed by the ablative with in. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 563. On the 
passage, cf. Ezekiel, xxvi. 1 1 and Jeremiah, viii. r, 2. — 12 - 16. 
Horace does not take account of the apotheosis of Romulus, to which 
he refers, C. III. 3. 16. Videre. Gr. 570. 1 and 3. 2). A. & S. 276. 
III. R. 2 and R. 4 {a). Forte — carere. Si is omitted. The order 
is : Forte quaeritis commtmiter (omnes) aut melior pars (cf. v. 37) quid 
expediat carere malis laboribus. Ritter makes it a question ; Dillenb. 
says that si is omitted. Carere depends on expediat. Gr. 553. V. 
A. & S. 271, N. 3. —17-20. Phocaeorum. The story of the Pho- 
caeans abandoning their city when Harpagus was besieging it, and 
declaring that they would not return till a bar of iron they threw into 
the sea should float, is told by Herodotus (I. 165). It must have been 
familiar to educated men, and the form of oath may have become pro- 
verbial. Exsecrata is used in a middle sense, = binding themselves 
under a curse, e7roirj<ravTo laxvpas Kardpas. So agros is governed by 
profugit, not by exsecrata. — 22. Africus. See on C. I. 1. 15. — 23. 
Sic placet ? Placetne ? was the formula addressed to the people at 
the comitia. The poet fancies himself addressing a meeting of the 
citizens. Habet suadere is another Greek construction, neideiv 

e^ei 25 - 28. Sed — haec — but let us take an oath in this form. 

Simul (sc. ac) = as soon as. Ne sit nefas = let it not be impious. 
The ordinary expression would be : Let it be impious to return be- 
fore that, etc. Domum = homeward. Matinus was a hill in 
Apulia, while the Padus (Po) was in the north of Italy. — 31 - 34. 
JJt = ita ut. Miluo; for milvo. See on siluae, Ep. XIII. 2. Ravos 
is found in the oldest MSS. Flavos, saevos, andfulvos are other read- 
ings. Levis hircus amet = let the goat become sleek, and love. 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. 723 

— 35-40. Haec . . . exsecrata = this having sworn. Quae = 
whatever else. Mollis = craven. Praeter et volate ; for etvolate 
praeter, or, as some say, by tmesis for et praetervolate. For the posi- 
tion oiet cf. C. I. 12. II ; I. 31. 10 ; I. 37. 8 ; III. 24. 48 ; IV. 7. 15 ; 
C. S. 3 ; Ep. II. 20, etc. — 41-44. Oceanus circumvagus = the 
circling Ocean ; according to the Homeric conception of it as a vast 
river flowing round the earth. Divites insulas = the Fortunate 
Islands ; generally supposed to be the Canaries. Cererem ; for 
fruges, as in Virg. A. I. 177 and elsewhere. Inarata. Cf. descrip- 
tions of the golden age, Ov. M. I. 101, 102 ; Virg. E. IV. 41. So on 
imputata, etc. — 46-50. Suam — arborem = and the purple 
(i. e. ripe) fig adorns its own tree ; i. e. without grafting. Cf. Virg. G. 
II. 82. Mella. See on Virg. E. IV. 22. Crepante desilit pede 
= " comes dancing down with tinkling feet " (Martin). Tenta ; like 
distenta, Ep. II. 46. — 51, 52. Vespertinus. Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 
205, R. 15. Cf. Virg. G. III. 537 : Non lupus insidias explorat ovilia 
circum, Nee gregihts nocturnus obambulat. Alta = heaving. — 57- 
60. Argoo remige = with Argonautic oarsmen. See on Virg. E. 
IV. 34, and for pinus cf. v. 38. He means to say, that no venturous 
sail has reached these islands ; not the Argo, in which Jason sailed 
for the golden fleece, nor Medea (Colchis), who returned with him 
to Greece, nor the Phoenicians (Sidonii), who went everywhere with 
their merchandise, nor the crew of Ulysses, who wandered about the 
seas for ten years. Laboriosa = toil-worn. — 62-66. Aestu- 
osa impotentia = the burning excess ; i. e. the excessive heat. 
Secrevit = set apart. Ut — aureum = when he alloyed the golden 
age with brass. Aere — secula = with brass and then with iron he 
hardened the ages. Cf. Ov. M. I. 89- 127, and see on Virg. E. IV. 
4, etc. Quorum — fuga = safe flight from which is granted to the 
pious, if I be prophet. 



THE SATIRES. Book I. 



To the Satire the Latin writers constantly assign a Roman origin. 
Quinctilian (X. 1) says: Saturn tota nostra est. The justice of the 
claim has been disputed by many critics, who assert that in this, as 
in other kinds of poetry, the Romans only followed the lead of the 
Greeks. The simple fact seems to be, that the same sentiments and 
modes of thinking had been common among the Greeks in what was 
called the Old Comedy (with which Horace, in defending his own 
Satires, classes them;, but it was the Romans who first gave them 



724 NOTES ON HORACE. 

expression in the form of regular metrical essays. It would appear 
also that the transition from the dramatic to the didactic form was 
gradual, and that it was the arbitrary suppression of the rude and 
coarse satirical plays of early times by the aristocracy, who had been 
assailed in them, which checked the current of satirical composition 
in that direction only to turn it into the other. 

The name Satira, or Satura, is derived from satur, full, and meant 
at first (sc. lanx) a dish filled with fruits of various kinds, thence a 
medley, olio, or farrago, and finally a poem in mixed metres and on 
various subjects, like the Satires of Ennius and Pacuvius. Lucilius, 
about the year B. C. 120, was the first to give a regular hexameter 
form to this class of poems, retaining the name Satira, thoqgh he had 
made it a misnomer. Quinctilian speaks of him as the first who gained 
distinction in Satire, and Horace calls him its inventor. But Lucilius 
satirized vice in the persons of living characters and was unsparingly 
harsh in dealing with them. Horace, on the other hand, is less per- 
sonal and more playful in his style. He laughs at folly instead of 
lashing the individual fool. He makes merry with the society and 
manners of the day, and only introduces particular persons incidentally 
and by way of illustration. 

For further remarks on the Satires, see Life. 

SATIRE I. — The professed purpose of this Satire, or that with 
which Horace seems to have begun, may be gathered from the first 
two lines. Discontent with the condition that Providence has assigned 
them ; envy of their neighbors' circumstances, even if worse than 
their own ; dissatisfaction in short with what they have and are, and 
craving for something they have not and are not ; — these are features 
common to the great majority of men. After propounding the whole 
subject in the shape of a question to Maecenas, Horace confines him- 
self to one solution of it, and that not the most comprehensive. 
Avarice is the only reason he assigns for the universal disease, and 
thus he leaves many untouched who are as culpably restless as the 
avaricious, but not in their sordid way. He writes, however, as he 
almost always does, with elegance and truth, and this is among the 
most popular of his Satires. 

1. Qui. Gr. 187. 1. A. & S. 136, R. 1. It is the older form of 
the ablative, and is only used by the later writers in particular phrases : 
as (1) quicitm = quocum (m. or n.) ; (2) without a noun and = where- 
with ; and (3) as an interrogative = by what means, how ? Quam . . . 
sortem . . . ilia ; for ilia sorte quam. Gr. 445. 9. A. & S. 206. 3 {a) 
and 6 (b). — 2. Ratio = choice ; fors = chance. — 3. Laudet ; ellip- 
tically for sed quisque laudet. In the transition from negative to posi- 
tive statements, the positive element contained in the former is often 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE I. 725 

carried on in the mind, so as to affect the latter. Nemo vivit is = 
quisque non vivit. Diversa = (widely) different, opposite. — 5. 
Membra. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. and R. 1. — 7. Quid enim 
is used as introductory to something which illustrates or explains 
what has just been said. It may be an elliptical question (sc. diets or 
some such word) but to point the words so as to indicate that mean- 
ing is no more desirable than to break up any other sentence and reduce 
it to its possible elements (Macleane). Concurritur. Gr. 195. II. 1. 
A. & S. 184. 2 (a) and {b). Horae momento is a common phrase 
in Livy and other writers. — 9-11. Juris — peritus. Jurisperiti, or 
jurisconsulti were persons who expounded the law. They gave their 
expositions (responsa) gratuitously. They were distinct from the pro- 
fessors or teachers (advocati) and others, who were paid for their 
services, and from oratores, though the consultus sometimes combined 
with his calling as such that of the orator or patronus. Horace here and 
in E. II. 1. 103 intimates that these learned persons sacrificed their 
own convenience to the anxiety of their clients, and received them at 
a very early hour in the morning. On Juris legumque, see Virg. A. I. 
507. Sub cantum ; a hyperbole. Datis vadibus = having given 
bail ; i. e. to appear at court, and now going reluctantly up to Rome 
for that purpose. Ille ; as if the man were before us. — 13, 14. 
Adeo multa is parenthetical. Delassare is not found elsewhere : 
the de is intensive. Valent ; not found with the infin. in prose till 
after the Augustan age. Cf. C. I. 34. 12. Nothing is known of the 
loquacious Fabius. — 15-19. Suppose some god were to offer them 
their wish, and bid them change places, — they would refuse it. En 
ego ; not joined with faciam, but absolute = Here am I. Partibus ; 
a metaphor taken from the theatre. Eia expresses haste and im- 
patience = Away with you ! Nolint is the apodosis to si quis deus 
dicat. Gr. 504. 1. A. & S. 261, R. 3. Beatis. Gr. 547. II. 1. 
A. & S. 269, R. 5.— 20-22. Causae. Gr. 396. III. 2. 3) (3). A. & S. 
212, R. 3 and N. 1 (b). Ambas — inflet ; an obvious, but not very 
reverential, representation of passion. Illis limits iratus. — 23. Qui ; 
sc. percurrit. — 25. Ut = as. Olim. See on C. II. 10. 17. — 27. 
Sed tamen ; like sed, C. IV. 4. 22, on which see note. — 28 - 32. 
The cause of that discontent which was spoken of at the beginning is 
here traced to the love of money, each man thinking that his neighbor 
is getting it faster than he is, and wishing therefore to change places 
with him. But Horace does not mean that to be the only solution of 
the universal discontent. That would be absurd, and one at least of 
his own examples would contradict his theory, the jurisconsultus y who 
did not pursue his laborious vocation for pay. He therefore shifts or 
limits his ground a little, and dwells upon that which he supposes to 
be the most prevalent cause of discontent ; and with his ground he 



726 NOTES ON HORACE. 

changes his examples. Nauta and mercator here are the same 
person, the trader navigating his own ship. Perfidus caupo. Cf. 
S. I. 5. 4. Per — currunt. Cf. C. I. 3. 9 foil. Series — rscedant 
explains mente. Cibaria ; properly, the rations of soldiers or slaves ; 
here, ironically, the humblest provision that can be made for the latter 
years of life, as if that was all that these men set before their minds. 

— 33. Nam — est = for this is their example; the one they quote. 
Gr. 390. II. 2. A. & S. 227, R. 2 ; 210, N. 3. Laboris. Gr. 396. 
IV. ; 397. 1. A. & S. 2ii, R. 8 (5). — 35. See on Virg. G. I. 186, 
and cf. A. IV. 402. — 36. Quae (= but she) is opposed to qtmm te. 
It begins the poet's reply. Simul ; sc. ac. Inversum annum ; 
Cowper's "inverted year." The sun enters Aquarius in January. 

— 40. Obstet, like demoveat, depends on quwn. Sit. Gr. 505. 
A. & S. 263. 2 (1) and N. — 42. Furtim, according to Heindorf and 
Orelli, goes with defossa, but Dillenb. and Macleane join it to deponere. 

— 43. Quod — assem = but if you take from it, it would soon 
dwindle to a paltry as. The miser is supposed to say this. — 44. 
But what charms has the heap of coin, if you don't use it ? is the 
poet's reply. Pulchri. See on ardui, C. 1. 4. 37. — 45 - 49. Milia ; 
sc. modiorum. Gr. 178. A. & S. 118. 6 (a). Triverit; concessive 
subjunctive. Gr. 516. II. 1, 4th line. A. & S. 260, R. 3. Area. 
See on C. I. 1. 9. Hoc = for that, on that account. Ac. Gr. 417. 4. 
A. & S. 256, R. 15. The scene that follows is that of a rich man's 
household preceding him to the country, the slaves (venales), some 
carrying provisions and particularly town-made bread in netted bags 
(reticula), others with different burdens, and others with none at all. 
The one who carried the bread would not get any more of it on that 
account, when the rations were given out. Nihilo. Gr. 418. A. & S. 
256, R. 16. — 50. Viventi. Gr. 408. 1. 3). A. & S. 219, R. 3. — 
51 - 60. At — acervo is the supposed answer to the preceding 
question. The poet rejoins to this effect : You might as well say, if 
you wanted a pitcher of water, that you had rather draw it from a 
river, like the Aufidus, than from the little spring by your side ; the 
consequence of which might be that you would be drowned. Tan- 
tundem ; quantum tu ex magno acervo. Haurire. Gr. 550. A. & S. 
270. The cumera was a large basket or earthen jar in which the 
poorer people kept their wheat. Tibi. Gr. 419. V. 3. A. & S. 226. 
The urna was strictly half an amphora, or twenty-four sextarii ; the 
cyathus, one-twelfth of a sextarius, or somewhat less than our pint. 
Aufidus. Cf. C. I. 30. 10. Tantuli. Gr. 409. 1. A. & S. 220. 3. 

— 61, 62. Bona pars= "a good many." Cf. A. P. 297. Quia — 
sis ; i. e. you are esteemed according to your wealth. Nil. Gr. 380. 2. 
A. & S. 277, R. 2 (0). Tanti. Gr. 402. 2. 2). A. & S. 214, R. 1 (1). — 
63-67. Illi==such a man. Gr. 434. 2. Z. 491. Quatenus = quo- 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE I. 727 

nia?n. " Bid him be miserable, since he likes to be so." The story 
that follows may have been picked up by Horace at Athens, or in- 
vented by him. Sibilat and plaudo are taken from the theatre. 

— 68-72. Tantalus. See on Ov. M. VI. 172. Quid rides? The 
miser is supposed to laugh at the trite illustration. Horace goes on 
to show its bearing. Cogeris = you force yourself. Tamquam . . . 
sacris ; and therefore not to be touched. So pictis tabellis, pic- 
tures, only to be looked at. — 74, 75. A sextarius of wine (see on 
v. 54) would be a day's supply for a temperate man. Quis = quibus. 

— 78. Compilent fugientes = rob you and run away. Gr. 579. 
A. & S. 274. 3, N. 2 {b). Horum = such. — 79. Bonorum. Cf. 
aquae, C. III. 30. 11. — 80-87. But, says the miser, if you have 
money, you will have anxious friends to nurse you in sickness. No, 
Horace replies, even your nearest relatives wish you dead ; and no 
wonder they have no love for you, when you love nothing but money. 
Post omnia ponas ; for postpones omnia. — 88 - 91. But say, if 
you seek to retain and keep the affection of those relations whom 
nature gives you without any trouble of your own, would you lose 
your labor, like the luckless fool that tries to turn an ass into a racer ? 
Amicos goes with cognatos, as we have rendered it. Training an 
ass to run in the Campus Marthas among the thorough-bred horses 
was perhaps a proverbial way of expressing lost labor. — 92-100. 
Quaerendi = of money-getting. Quumque minus = and since you 
have more (than others) you should fear poverty less. Ne facias = 
lest you fare, ^77 7rpd(T(TT]s. All that we know of Ummidius is what 
Horace here tells us, that he was very rich (so that he measured his 
money instead of counting it) and very mean, and that he was murdered 
by one of his freedwomen, who, Horace says, was as stout-hearted as 
Clytemnestra, the bravest of her family, who killed her husband Aga- 
memnon. Tyndaridarum is masculine : Tyndaridum would be the 
feminine form. Cf. Virg. A. II. 569. Adusque is only an inversion 
of usque ad. — 101-105. What, says the miser, would you have me 
become a spendthrift like some we know ? Nay, Horace replies, when 
I bid you slum one extreme I do not urge you to the other. Maenius 
and Nomentanus are names used by Lucilius for characters of the 
same kind. Frontibus — componere ; i. e. to bring face to face, and 
compare. Tanain . . . socerumque Viselli. What the distinction 
between them may have been, is unknown. — 108. Illuc — avarus 
= I come back then to the point from which I started, — that no 
covetous man, etc. The reading is not certain, and the hiatus in 
nemo ut is unusual. — 114-117. Cf. Virg. G. I. 512-514, and note 
on carcerihus. Temnens ; very rare in prose. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 
620. — 119. Cf. the words of Lucretius (III. 951) which Horace 
may have had in mind : 



728 NOTES ON HORACE. 

Cur non ut plenus vitae conviva recedis, 
Aequo animoque capis securam, stulte, quietem ? 

— 120. Of Crispinus we know nothing. Of the much that he wrote 
no line has come down to us. Lippi is an epithet which Horace 
applies to himself, S. I. 5. 30. He may use it here good-naturedly in 
its literal sense, or, as some think, for mental blindness. 

SATIRE V. — This satire is a humorous account of a journey 
from Rome to Brundusium, which Horace made in company with 
Maecenas, and other friends. The date is probably B. C. 37, when 
Maecenas was sent by Octavianus to negotiate terms of reconcilia- 
tion with Antonius, as he had been once before, in B. C. 40, when the 
alliance called the foedus Brundusinum was formed. 

The shortest and easiest route lay through Venusia and Tarentum, 
but the party took the northeastern road, which strikes across the 
country from Beneventum to Barium, and thence along the shore to 
Brundusium. They were evidently not pressed for time and probably 
took that road because it passed through Canusium, whither one of 
the party (Varius) was bound. 

The whole distance was 312 (Dillenb. makes it 361) Roman miles, 
which are a little shorter than ours, and the time taken for the jour- 
ney was fifteen (or, as Orelli thinks, seventeen) days. 

1. They left Rome by the Porta Capena in the southern quarter of 
the city. Aricia (now La Riccia) was an ancient town of Latium, 
sixteen miles from Rome, on the Appian Way. Cicero calls it muni- 
cipium . . . vetustate antiquissimum, splendore municipum honestissimum. 

— 2. Hospitio modico = an indifferent inn. The inns on the 
great roads were never very good, chiefly because travellers of any 
importance usually found friends at the principal towns who enter- 
tained them. Of Heliodorus we know nothing from other sources. 

— 3-5. Appii Forum (now Borgo Lungo) was thirty-nine miles 
from Rome, and was so called by Appius Claudius, surnamed Caecus, 
who in his censorship (A. U. C. 441) constructed the Via Appia and 
the great aqueduct which bore his name. The participle differtus 
= full, as from differcio, which verb is not found. Malignis belongs 
to cauponibus in the same sense as perfidus, S. I. 1. 29. Nautae 
were the boatmen who plied on the canal mentioned on v. 7. It was 
to Appii Forum that some of the Christians, when they heard of St. 
Paul's approach, went from Rome to meet him. Others met him at 
a place called Tres Tabernae (La Castella), which was about seven 
miles from Aricia and sixteen from Appii Forum. Horace must 
have passed through this town without stopping. — 5, 6. Hoc — 
divisimus ; i. e. the journey from Rome to Appii Forum, which 
was usually made in one day, they took two to accomplish. Prae- 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE V. 729 

cinctus is opposed to discinctus and = one well girt, evfavos, and 
ready for active exertion, running, etc. Succinctus, tucked up, is the 
more usual word. See on accingunt, Virg. A. I. 210. Minus — tar- 
dis ; i. e. the Via Appia was less fatiguing to the slow traveller than to 
the quick, since it was a rough road. Cf. E. I. 1 1. 1 1. Lucilius calls it 
iter labosu?n atque lutosum. For ac, see on S. I, 1. 46. — 7-10. At 
Appii Forum they were to embark at night in a boat that was to carry 
them by canal to Tarracina. A party were waiting at the same inn to 
go with them, and Horace waited with impatience till they had done 
supper. These he means by comites. This canal was constructed 
by Augustus. It was nineteen miles long, and was called in conse- 
quence Decennovium. The* road may have been defective here- 
abouts, as it was the general practice of travellers to exchange it for 
the canal, and to make the journey by night. Jam — parabat seems 
to be a parody of the heroic style. Signa = constellations. — 12 - 
24. Ingerere. Gr. 545. 1. A. & S. 209, R. 5. Hue appelle ! 
" Put in here, and take us on board ! " cries a servant. " How many 
more ? — you '11 swamp the boat ! " says another to the boatman, who 
wants to get as many as he can. The bank is crowded ; the passen- 
gers all want to be attended to at once. The collection of the fare 
and harnessing the mule being accomplished, Horace goes on board. 
The boat starts, and he lies down to sleep, disturbed much by the 
mosquitos and the croaking of frogs. The boatman and one of the 
passengers, half drunk, sing songs till the one drops off to sleep, and 
the other, having a mind to do the same, stops the boat, turns the 
mule out to graze, lays himself down, and snores till daybreak, when 
one of the passengers wakes, starts up in a passion, and falls to beat- 
ing the boatman and the poor mule. They get started again, and a 
little after the fourth hour they reach their destination, a temple of 
Feronia, about seventeen miles from where they embarked. Cere- 
brosus = choleric. Dolat = " trims," as we say. Lavimus ; 
present from lavere. Gr. 263. A. & S. 185. 2. — 25 - 29. Three 
miles farther, on the top of a steep hill (hence repimus) was the 
town of Tarracina (Terracina) or Anxur, as the Volscians and the 
poets called it. It was an ancient and an important place. Late 
candentibus ; from the buildings of white marble. Cf. C. I. 14. 19. 
Here the party lunched before they proceeded. The prandium was a 
light meal, usually eaten about noon, but sometimes earlier, as probably 
in this instance. Cocceius. L. Cocceius Nerva was a friend of M. 
Antonius, and had been taken prisoner by Augustus. He seems to 
have become especially intimate with the latter without betraying hi* 
friendship for the former. Aversos — amicos alludes to the treaty 
made between Augustus and Antonius, B. C. 41, through Maecenas 
on the part of the former, and Cocceius and Pollio of the latter. — 



73° NOTES ON HORACE. 

30. Oculis ; dat. with illinere. — 31 - 36. Here Horace and Helio- 

dorus are joined by the official members of the party. Little is known 
of C. Fonteius Capito, except that he was a particular friend of Anto- 
nius, for which reason he was deputed by Augustus on this occasion. 
Ad unguem factus ; a metaphor taken from the craft of the sculp- 
tor, who tries the surface of his statue by passing his nail over it. Cf. 
A. P. 294. Non — alter = quam qui maxime in prose. At Tarra- 
cina they slept and proceeded next morning to Fundi (Fondi), sixteen 
miles farther to the northeast of Tarracina. It was one of that class 
of towns called praefectura, which, instead of having the administra- 
tion of its own affairs, was governed by a praefectus sent annually 
from Rome by the Praetor Urbanus. At this time the praefectus was 
one Aufidius Luscus (not otherwise known), an upstart whom Horace 
calls Praetor by way of ridicule. The officers of the other municipal 
towns were allowed to wear the toga praetexta, the toga with a purple 
border, but the praefecti were not, and yet Luscus wore it. For the 
latus clavus see on Ov. Trist. IV. 10. 29. Prunae batillum was 
a pan of hot coals, which may have been used for burning incense. 
Aufidius, it appears, had been a scriba or clerk, probably in the prae- 
tor's office, — such a situation as Horace held at this time in the 
quaestor's, — and his honors are spoken of as praemia, rewards of 
service rendered to his master. — 37, 38. The party move on, in the 
course of the day, to Formiae (Mola di Gaeta), about twelve miles 
farther, at the head of the Sinus Caietanus. See on C. III. 16. 34. 
As the scene of Cicero's frequent retirement, and of his death, it is 
a place of much interest. Horace here calls it the city of the Mamur- 
rae, — a family of respectability in this town. When the party got to 
Formiae, having travelled upwards of twenty-five miles, they were 
tired, and resolved to pass the night there. They supped with Capito, 
who seems to have had a house there, and slept at Murena's. See C. 
II. 10. Introd. — 39 - 44. Leaving Formiae next day, the party set 
out for Sinuessa (Bagjzoli), eighteen miles distant. The road crossed 
the Liris (C. I. 31. 7) at Minturnae, and went down the coast till it 
reached Sinuessa, the most southerly of the Latin towns. It was on 
the sea, and said to have been founded on the ruins of the Greek city 
Sinope. — Plotius Tucca appears to have been a native of Cisalpine 
Gaul. He was associated with L. Varius Rufus by Virgil, who loved 
them both, as the executor of his will. See Life of Virgil. L. Varius 
was an epic and tragic poet, but, with the exception of a few verses, 
his works have all perished. Quales. A. & S. 256, R. 10 (b). Quis 
=-quibus ; with devinctior. Me = than I (am). Contulerim. Gr. 
486. I. A. & S. 260, R. 4. Sanus = while in my right mind. — 
45, 46. From Sinuessa the Appia Via continued to take a south- 
erly direction, and crossed the Savo (Savone) about three miles from 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE V. 73 1 

that town, and just within the borders of Campania. That river was 
crossed by a bridge bearing the name Pons Campanus, near which 
was a small house erected for the accommodation of persons travel- 
ling on public business, where there were officers appointed to supply 
them with ordinary necessaries. Hence they were called parochi, 
from the Greek Ttapk^Eiv. In this house the party passed the night. 
— 47-49. When it reached the right bank of the Vulturnus, four 
miles below the Savo, the Appia Via turned, striking inland along 
that bank of the river, which it crossed at the town of Casilinum, 
where Hannibal met with stout resistance from the Romans who gar- 
risoned it after the battle of Cannae (Liv. XXIII. 17). This is per- 
haps the site of the modern Capua. About two miles further on the 
road, which now took a southeasterly direction, lay Capua, on the 
site of which is the modern village Santa Maria di Capoa. There the 
party arrived betimes (tempore) — in time probably for dinner, after 
which meal Maecenas and others of the party went to play at ball, 
while Horace, whose sight, and Virgil, whose digestion, interfered 
with that amusement, went early to bed. Orudis = dyspeptics. — 
50. The next halting-place was Caudium, the first Samnite town on 
the Via Appia, at the head of the famous pass called the Furcae (or 
Fauces) Caudinae, twenty-one miles southeast of Capua. Here Coc- 
ceius had a handsome villa, situated beyond the public tavern. — 
51-57. The scene that follows represents a scurrilous contest be- 
tween two parasites whom Maecenas carried with him for the enter- 
tainment of himself and his party. The description begins with an 
invocation of the Muse in mock-heroic style. Sarmentus was an 
Etrurian, formerly a slave of M. Favonius, on the sale of whose con- 
fiscated property he had been bought by Maecenas, who gave him his 
liberty. He then obtained the office of scribe, a place which he 
appears to have held at this time. When Horace says that Messius 
was of the noble blood of the Osci, he means by way of joke to say 
that he was of old and high descent. Cicirrhus is a nickname from 
KLKippos, meaning, according to Hesychius, " a cock." Memores. 
Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, R. 4. Exstat = is still living. Equi ; 
i. e. the unicorn. Gr. 391. 2. 4). A. & S. 222, R. 2 (0). — 58 - 61. 
Messius accepts the joke as a challenge, and shakes his head fiercely 
at Sarmentus, who pretends to be alarmed thereat. Cornu. Gr. 
428. 1. 2). A. & S. 211, R. 6 and (7). Eli. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 
211, R. 5 (1). — 62-64. The " Campanian disease" is said to have 
consisted of horn-like excrescences over the temples, which used to 
be cut off, leaving a scar. Saltaret uti Cyclopa ; i. e. that Ke 
should dance the Cyclops dance, in which the uncouth gestures of 
Polyphemus courting Galatea were represented. Cf. E. II. 2. 125. 
Saltare with an accus. is not found before the Augustan age. Ovid 



732 NOTES ON HORACE. 

uses it in the passive (Trist. II. 519) : et meet, sunt populo saltata poemata 
saepe. Nil — cothurnis; i. e. he would be big enough and ugly 
enough without buskins or mask. — 65-70. Catenani. When a 
slave was freed, he hung up his chain as a votive offering to the Lares, 
to whom boys also dedicated their bulla when they assumed the toga 
virilis. See on Ov. Trist. IV. 10. 28. Quod = although. Nihilo ; 
a dissyllable. Scriba — esse is only a joke intended to amuse 
Maecenas, who had bought and manumitted Sarmentus. Cui . , . 
foret. Gr. 519. A. & S. 264. 8(1). The allowance of far to each 
slave was four or five modii a month, and it was served out to them 
monthly, or sometimes daily. That allowance would give three pints 
a day, which Messius says would be three times as much as Sar- 
mentus could eat ; so he could not better himself by running away. 
That two persons above the condition of slaves should be found in wait- 
ing on any man, great or otherwise, for the purpose of entertaining 
him with such low buffoonery as this, seems surprising to us ; but we 
know that there was no personal degradation to which this class of 
people, called " parasites," would not demean themselves for the pleas- 
ure of a good dinner and the company of the great. — 71 - 76. The 
Appia Via took a northeast turn from Caudium, for ten miles, till it 
came to Beneventum (Benevento), a very ancient town, said to have 
been founded by Diomed, and the name of which was originally, when 
the Samnites had it, Maleventum, or some name that sounded so like 
Maleventum to a Latin ear that the Romans thought fit to change it 
(for good luck) to Beneventum. Thither the party proceeded next 
day, and put up at an inn, when the host nearly set fire to his house 
{hospes paene arsit. Cf. Virg. A. II. 311), through carelessness in 
roasting some indifferent thrushes for their dinner. The position of 
macros is a little careless. Videres. Gr. 486. 4. A. & S. 260, R. 2. 
— 77 - 81. Notos ; since he was born near them. Atabulus ; a 
cold wind, said to be peculiar to Apulia. Torret is applied to cold 
as well as heat. Erepsemus (for erepsissemus) = transissemus, and 
taking the accus. quos. Horace says that they would never have 
got out of these hills (the range that borders Samnium and separates 
it from Apulia), had they not found an inn at the town of Trivicum 
(Trevico), at which they were able to put up for the night. He 
means that the next stage, which was twenty-four miles farther on, 
would have been too long a journey. Camino. See on Ep. II. 43. 
— 82-88. Rhedis = carriages ; large four-wheeled vehicles. Cf. 
S. II. 6. 42. It is difficult to identify the town with the unrhythmical 
name, but it was probably near the Apulian Asculum (Ascoli). Ve- 
nit = is sold. Ultra = ulterius inde. Canusium (Canosa) was one 
of the old Greek towns of Apulia, about twelve miles from the mouth 
of the Aufidus. The region was not well watered. Cf. C. III. 30. 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE VI. 733 

11. The bread of Canosa is said to be as bad as ever. A modern 
traveller expresses his regret at not having followed Horace's ex- 
ample in bringing a supply from another place, " for what we got 
here," he says, " was as brown as mahogany, and so gritty that it set 
our teeth on edge to crunch it." It is accounted for by the friable 
nature of the millstones. Aquae — olim = which place, being not 
richer in water (than the last) by a single pitcher, was built by brave 
Diomed. This is awkward, but it is the best the critics can make of 
it. — 90-95. Rubi (Ruvo) was a town of the Peucetii, thirty miles 
from Canusium. Barium (Barij, an important town on the coast, 
was twenty-two miles farther on. The modern road is as bad as the 
ancient, it is said. Gnatia, or Egnatia, was another seaport town, 
thirty-seven miles from Barium. Horace says it was built under the 
ban of the Nymphs because the water was so bad, and travellers de- 
scribe it as no better now. Lymphae and Nymphae are essentially 
the same word. The Naiads are here meant. See on Virg. E. V. 75. 
Dum — liquescere. Pliny relates that a stone was shown at Egnatia 
which was said to have the power of setting fire to wood touched with 
it. — 96-100. The majority of the Jews at Rome were freedmen, 
and Apella was a common name for libertini. Their creed was a su- 
perstition of the most contemptible kind, in the eyes of a Roman ; 
and a Jew was only another name for a credulous fool. Horace inti- 
mates that he had learnt from the school of Epicurus that the gods 
were too happy to mind the small affairs of this world, which he 
expresses in the words of Lucretius (VI. 57) : Nam bene qui didicere 
dcos securum agere aevum. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 379. Miri limits quid. 
Brundusium, or Brundisium (Brindisi), was for centuries the most 
important town on the eastern coast of Italy, chiefly through the 
convenience of its position for communicating with Greece, and the 
excellence of its harbor. Its distance from Egnatia was thirty-five 
miles. There was a station named Speluncae (now Grotta Rosa) 
midway, where the party may have halted one night, and which 
Horace, having nothing he cared to tell us about it, has passed oyer 
in silence. 

SATIRE VI. — In addition to the obloquy brought upon him by 
his Satires, Horace, after his intimacy with Maecenas began to be 
known, had to meet the envy such good fortune was sure to excite. 
In this Satire, which is an epistle to Maecenas, he spurns the idea that 
his birth is any objection to him, while, at the same time, he argues 
sensibly against trying to get beyond one's own legitimate sphere, and 
aiming at honors which are only attended with inconvenience, fatigue, 
and ill-will. This Satire, besides the good sense and good feeling it 
contains, is valuable as bearing upon Horace's life. His introduction 



734 NOTES ON HORACE. 

to Maecenas is told concisely, but fully, and with much propriety and 
modesty ; and nothing can be more pleasing than the filial affection 
and gratitude shown in those parts that relate to his father, and the 
education he gave him. See Life. 

1-6. The order of translation is : O Maecenas, non suspendis 
adunco naso, ut plerique solent, ignotos, ut me naium libertino patre, 
quia nemo (eorum), quidquid Lydorum incoluit Etruscos fines, est gen- 
erosior te, nee quod fuit tibi maternus atque paternus avus, qui olini 
imperitarent magnis legionibus. For Maecenas's connection with 
Etruria, see on C. I. i. i. There was a legend that the Lydians 
colonized Etruria. Cf. Virg. A. II. 781. The second ut is = as for 
instance. Naso suspendere adunco = to turn up the nose at. — 7 - 11. 
Cum — negas = when you say that it matters not. Dum = pro- 
vided that. Tulli. Horace follows the legend which made Servius 
Tullius the son of a slave-girl. On this account his reign was igno- 
ble, while in true nobility it was surpassed by none of the others. 
Nullis — ortos. Livy (IV. 3) calls Servius Tullius mcllo patre 
natus, and the Greeks called a man of ignoble birth a7rdra)p, father- 
less. Vixisse. Gr. 553. II. — 12 - 17. The Valerian gens was one 
of the most ancient in Rome, and the family of Laevinus was a dis- 
tinguished branch of it. The Laevinus here mentioned was so bad a 
man that even the populace, though they often conferred their honors 
on the vicious, could not be prevailed upon by admiration of his high 
ancestry to advance him beyond the quaestorship ; that is to say, he 
never held a curule office. Genus. Cf. C. I. 3. 27. Unde = «^w. 
See on C. I. 12. 17. Valerius Publicola was the colleague of Brutus 
after the expulsion of the Tarquins. Fugit. Gr. 467. III. A. & S. 
259. 1 (a). Licere = to be put up for sale ; hence, to be valued. 
Pluris ; gen. of price. Judice quo nosti = and you know what 
judges they are; said contemptuously. Quo; for quern, by attrac- 
tion. Titulis et insignibus ; inscriptions and waxen busts in honor 
of ancestors, kept in the atrium of a Roman house. — 18 - 21. Longe 
longeque is not an uncommon phrase. It is analogous to etiam 
atque etiam, magis magisque, etc. Mallet. Gr. 495. 2 ; 496. 1. A. & 
S. 262, R. 3, N. 1 and R 4. Horace goes on to show that, though 
the value set on titles and birth by the populace might be exaggerated, 
yet the other extreme is not to be allowed , and that he who seeks to 
push himself beyond his sphere, might be justly rebuked for his pre- 
sumption. Decio. P. Decius Mus, who devoted himself to death 
for his country at the battle of Vesuvius, in the Latin war, B. C. 340, 
was the first consul of his family. After the curule magistracies were 
opened to the plebeians, an order of nobility sprung up among them- 
selves, based upon the holding of these offices. Those families of 
which any member had ever held a curule office were nobiles, the rest 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE VI. 735 

ignobiles, and he in whose person such dignity was first attained was 
called, originally no doubt through the contempt of the patricians, 
but afterwards conventionally by all, novus homo. The Decia gens 
was plebeian. Appius. The Appius who is here taken as the type 
of severe censorship is Appius Claudius Caecus, the constructor of 
the road and aqueduct that bore his name (see S. 5. 2). He was made 
Censor B. C. 312. It was the province of the Censors, till that office 
was merged in the imperial power, to supply vacancies in the senate 
from the list of those who were eligible. But they could also, in re- 
vising the list of senators at the beginning of their censorship, degrade 
(movere) those who had previously been in the senate, as well as ex- 
clude such as by their official rank were entitled to be senators. Hor- 
ace, therefore, means that if he, through the favor of Maecenas or 
other means, sought as a freedman's son to reach the dignity of a sen- 
ator, and succeeded, the censors, if they did their duty strictly, would 
degrade him. — 22. Vel merito ; sc. me moveret. Pelle ; in allusion 
to the fable of the ass in the lion's skin. — 23. This verse may or 
may not be taken from some heroic poem. It is introduced humor- 
ously, and yet with a serious meaning. " Let the populace set their 
hearts upon rank and descent, and let the censors make that their 
standard for the senate, yet the humbly born may have their honors 
as well " ; that is, the honors that arise from virtue and genius. Cf. 
E. II. 1. 177. — 24. Quo tibi (sc. profitit) =how has it profited you ? 
Gr. 367. 3. A. & S. 209, R. 4. Tillius is said to have been a sena- 
tor, degraded by Julius Caesar, but reinstated after Caesar's death, 
and made a military tribune. Whether he is the person mentioned 
in v. 107 is doubtful. Tribune Gr. 547. II. A similar construction 
is explained in A. & S. 269, R. 5. For clavum (sc. latum) see on S. 
I. 5. 34. — 27 - 29. Ut = simul ac. A. & S. 259 (2) (d). The sena- 
tor's calceus was fastened by four thongs (nigris pellibus), two on 
each side, which went spirally up to the calf of the leg (medium 
crus). These were black, but the shoe itself appears to have varied 
in color. — 30 - 33. Ut cupiat, etc. explains morbo, the " weak- 
ness " of Barrus. Puellis — quaerendi ; i. e. makes the girls curi- 
ous to know. Facie, etc. ; abl. of characteristic. — 34, 35. The 
reference is to the promises of candidates for office, and the three 
principal magistracies are implied : the city praetorship, in urbem sibi 
curae ; the consulship, in imperium et Italiam ; and the aedileship, 
in delubra deorum, because the aedile had the care of the temples. 
— 38, 39. A question from one of the people to one of these official 
upstarts. Syri, etc., were common names of slaves. Criminals were 
sometimes executed by throwing them from the Tarpeian rock, which 
was part of Mons Capitolinus. Cadmo ; a public executioner of 
that day. — 40 - 44. At — meus is the reply of the plebeian tribune, 



736 NOTES ON HORACE. 

who sa5'S that, if his birth is low, that of his colleague is still lower. 
Gradu — uno may be a metaphor taken from the theatre, where the 
first fourteen rows of seats were assigned to the Equites. Hoc tibi 

— hoc nos is the rejoinder of the speaker in vv. 38, 39. "Does 
that make you a Paullus or a Messalla ? He at any rate has stout 
lungs, and that 's what we like." Hoc ■= propter hoc, as in S. I. 1. 46. 
The names mentioned are those of distinguished Roman families: 
Funera ; public funerals, which were attended by bands of musicians 
and women (praeficae) singing dirges. The procession went to the 
Forum, where a funeral oration was delivered, and thence, with the 
same noisy accompaniments, to the place without the city (intramural 
burials were forbidden by the laws of the Twelve Tables) where the 
body was first to be burnt, and then buried. Magna ; adverbially 
with sonabit. Gr. 335. 4. 1). A. & S. 205, R. 10. — 45-48. See 
Life of Horace. Tibi. Gr. 392. A. & S. 222, R. 8.-49-53. 
Forsit (fors sit) is not found elsewhere. Horace says it might be 
that people had cause to grudge him the honorable post of military 
tribune, because he was not qualified for it ; but no one could deny 
that he deserved the friendship of Maecenas, because he was so par- 
ticular in choosing only the deserving. ■ Prava ambitione means low 
flattery, to which Maecenas would not listen. For assumere, see 
on pati, C. I. 1. 18. Ambitione. Gr. 437. 2. A. & S. 245, R. 2. 
Felicem = lucky. Horace means that he did not owe his introduc- 
tion to Maecenas to his luck, but to his friends. For hoc, see on v. 
41. — 55 - 59. Varius. See S. I. 5. 40. Quid = qualis. Cf. v. 60. 
Singultim ; catching his breath, as a nervous man might. Satu- 
reiano . . . caballo. Saturium in Calabria near Tarentum, was very 
famous for its breed of horses. — 64. Non — puro = not as being 
the son of a distinguished father, but because my life and heart were 
pure. See on dime, C. I. 2. 1. — 65, 66. The order is : Atqui ( — 
jam vero) si mea natura est mendosa mediocribus et paucis vitiis, etc. 

— 68. Mala lustra = bad haunts. Horace repeatedly introduces 
aut after neque . . . neque. Cf. S. I. 9. 31, etc. — 72-75. See Life. 
Flavins was a provincial schoolmaster. Ovid in like manner was sent 
from Sulmo to Rome. See Trist. IV. 10. 16. Magni, magnis may 
be = big, coarse, (contemptuously) ; or = important, as centurions 
and their sons might be in a country town. Laevo — lacerto. Each 
boy went to school with a bag, in which he carried his books and 
pens, and perhaps his calculi, or pebbles used in calculation. Tabu- 
lain probably signifies the wooden tablet covered with wax, for writ- 
ing upon. Loculos. Gr. 380. A. & S. 234. II. Z. 458. Hermann, 
Dillenb., and others make octonis Idibus mean the Ides of the 
eight school months of the year, October to June. This is perhaps 
the best of many explanations of the passage. Aera ; the monthly 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE VI. 737 

fee for tuition. — 77. In the earlier days of Roman history, the edu- 
cation of a boy was of the simplest kind, consisting chiefly of reading, 
writing, and arithmetic. Calculator and notarius continued until the 
time of Martial to be names for a schoolmaster; and Horace com- 
plains that even in his day the teaching was chiefly in figures and the 
pursuits of a practical life. Cf. E. II. i. 103 foil ; A. P. 325 foil. — 
79. In — populo = so far as one could see me in such a busy crowd. 
Dillenb. makes it = ut in magno populo (in magna urbe) decet. — 81 - 
85. The paedagogus (custos), had the same functions as the iraiha- 
ycoyos among the Greeks, and was a slave, as there. He was the con- 
stant attendant of the boy and went with him to his masters. This 
task Horace's father performed himself. On this portion of the Satire 
generally, see Life. Quid multa ? Gr. 367. 3 ; 380. 2. A. & S. 
229, R. 3. 2. Qui. Gr. 445. 4. A. & S. 206 (8). Non solum . . . 
verum. A. & S. 277, R. 10. Sibi . . . vitio. Gr. 390. 1. 2). A. & S. 
227, R. 1. — 86. Praeco; a crier, either at auctions (A. P. 419), or 
in courts of justice, or the public assemblies. Coactor. See Life. 
— 87. Hoc. See on v. 41. — 89. Nil — sanum = Never while I 
have my senses let me be ashamed. Cf. S. I. 5. 44. — 90. Non. 
Gr. 602. IV. Cf. v. 1. Dolo suo=by his own fault. — 92. Istis. 
Gr. 450. 4. A. & S. 207, R. 25. — 93. Et vox et ratio = both my 
language and my judgment. — 94 - 99. A — annis == from any 
given period. Legere ad fastum = to choose according to ambi- 
tion. Contentus — sumere = contented with mine, I would not 
care to take those honored with the fasces and the curule chair ; i. e. 
who have filled high offices, like those of consul, praetor, etc. — 101 - 
104. Salutandi plures ; i. e. in order to preserve his position he 
must sell his independence, bowing to persons he would not other- 
wise notice, and paying visits of ceremony early in the morning, — a 
trouble that Horace would feel more than most men. He must also, 
he says, hire one or two persons to go about with him in the charac- 
ter of clients ; he must buy a number of horses and slaves of the 
lower sort. Petorrita were four-wheeled carriages, said to have 
been introduced from Gaul. Curto = docked, probably ; but some 
make it = cheap. — 105 -109. Usque Tarentum ; i. e. along the 
most frequented of all the roads, the Via Appia, and to the farthest 
part of Italy, carrying his portmanteau behind him. Public officers 
could not go beyond a certain distance from Rome without the per- 
mission of the senate. Tilli. See on v. 24- He appears to have been 
a parsimonious person, going into the country with no company of 
friends, but only five slaves to attend him, carrying a jar of their 
master's cheap wine and a portable kitchen. The Via Tiburtina left 
Rome by the Esquiline gate, and bore that name as far as Tibur, 
whence the Via Valeria completed the communication with Aternum 

47 



738 NOTES ON HORACE. 

on the Hadriatic. — 111 - 115. Milibus . . . aliis = quam mille alii. 
Some make atque connect hoc and milibus aliis : " in hac re et mille 
aliis rebus." In either case, the expression is unusual. Quanti; 
gen. of price. Horace means that he lounges in the market and talks 
freely to the market people, without fear of lowering his dignity or 
being remarked. Circum ; the Circus Maximus, which was a resort 
for fortune-tellers and other impostors. "When there were no races 
or games going on, it was probably frequented as a lounge by all man- 
ner of people ; but probably men of consequence did not care to be 
seen there among the vulgar at such times. The Forum was not fre- 
quented in the evening by the richer class of people, who were then 
eating their dinner. Horace liked to stroll out at that hour, and take 
his light meal afterwards, and to stop and hear what the fortune-tellers 
had to say for themselves. See C. I. 11. Introd. Vespertinum. 
Gr. 443. 2. A. & S. 205, R. 15 (a). So domesticus, v. 128. Ad — 
catinum. This Pythagorean meal of leeks, pulse, and fritters, was 
partly perhaps matter of choice, and partly of necessity. Horace 
was poor at this time, and his health was indifferent. A dish of cicer, 
ready boiled, was sold in the streets for an as, in the time of Martial 
(I. 104. 10). Laganus is described by the Scholiasts as a flat, thin 
cake, fried and eaten with condiments. It was sometimes fried under 
roast meat or fowls, so as to get their dripping, like the English 
"Yorkshire pudding." — 116-118. Pueris tribus; probably the 
fewest that waited on anybody who had slaves at all. Gr. 414. 5. 1). 
A. & S. 247. 3, R. 4. Lapis albus ; a small side-table of white mar- 
ble. The wealthy Romans had a great variety of tables of the hand- 
somest sort in their dining-rooms for exhibiting their plate. All the 
plate Horace had to show was two cups and a cyathus, and these it is 
probable were usually empty. The echinus is a vessel nowhere else 
mentioned by that name, and is variously interpreted as a saltcellar 
(in the shape of an echinus or sea-hedgehog), a glass bottle, a leath- 
er bottle, and a wooden bowl in which to wash the cups. Paterae 
were broad, flat cups, much used in libations. Guttus was a long bot- 
tle, from which wine or oil was poured slowly, drop by drop. It was 
also used in libations, and these two vessels, as here joined, have refer- 
ence to the practice of offering a libation at every meal to the Lares. 
These were of the commonest earthenware, which came from Campa- 
nia. — 119 - 124. Horace says he goes to bed without the nervous 
feeling that he must be up early to go to the Forum, where a statue 
of Marsyas (or Marsya, who was flayed alive by Apollo, with whom 
he had dared to contend in music) was erected near the Rostra. 
The " younger Novius " is said to have been an usurer, who had a 
stand near the statue, which, with uplifted hand, seemed to be driving 
him away. Vagor = I take a stroll. Lecto aut scripto. Gr. 43 1 



THE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE IX. 739 

and 5. A. & S. 257, R 5 {a) and R. 9. 1 (&), where " things " should 
be included as well as " persons." Taciturn ; i. e. by myself. Ungor 
olivo ; i. e. I anoint myself, and go to the Campus Martius to get 
some exercise. The parsimonious Natta, who robbed the lamps to 
oil himself, was probably a person of good family, that being the 
cognomen of the Pinaria gens, one of the oldest patrician families in 
Rome. — 125 - 131. When the sun began to get hot about noon, 
and Horace was tired with his game, he went to the public baths to 
bathe, which was usual after playing, and then took a light luncheon 
(cf. S. I. 5. 25), after which he lounged at home till evening, when 
he went out for his stroll perhaps, and came home again to his sup- 
per, as he told us before. Lusum trigonem was a game of ball 
only mentioned elsewhere by Martial. The players, as the name 
implies, were three in number, and stood in a triangle. Their skill 
appears to have been shown in throwing and catching the ball with 
the left hand. Quantum — durare = as much as would prevent 
me from going all day on an empty stomach. The prose construction 
would be interpellet quin, or quominus, or ne durem. The office of 
quaestor, which was once a high magistracy, when the quaestor es had 
charge of the aerarium or public treasury, was at this time one of 
little weight. Horace was a scriba in the quaestor's office, which per- 
haps leads him to speak of a quaestor. The office was high enough 
for the occasion. 

SATIRE IX. — This Satire, which is justly popular for its humor 
and great dramatic power, has an historical value as showing, unde- 
signedly, but more clearly than almost any description could do, the 
character of Horace. It puts the man before us as in a picture. 

He represents himself as sauntering alone and early on the Sacra 
Via, when a person he knew no more than by name, a forward cox- 
comb, comes up familiarly and falls into conversation with him, to 
his great annoyance, for he wanted to be alone, and knew the fellow's 
character, which was probably notorious. Horace does his best to 
shake him off, but he is too amiable to cope with the effrontery of his 
companion, whose object is to get, through Horace, an introduction 
to Maecenas. The man's vulgarity and want of tact are conspicuous 
throughout the scene, while Horace exhibits in every part good breed- 
ing and an amiable temper ; and though he is tried to the utmost by 
reflections on his patron and his friends, he is incapable of saying a 
rude word, is taken off his guard continually, and is amusingly con- 
scious of his inferiority to the man of insolence on his own ground. 
The effect of this picture is heightened by the introduction, towards 
the end of the scene, of Aristius Fuscus, an old friend of the poet, 
and a man of the world, who, like Horace, understood character, but 



740 NOTES ON HORACE. 

had that sort of moral courage and promptitude which his friend 
lacked. The readiness with which he takes up the joke and enters 
into Horace's absurd position, and the despair to which his desertion 
reduces the poet, are highly ludicrous. After various ineffectual at- 
tempts to get rid of the man, Horace is at last delivered by one who 
seizes upon the intruder and carries him off to appear before the 
praetor on some suit he has against him. 

1. Horace does not mean that it was his custom to stroll on the 
Sacra Via, especially at eight o'clock in the morning (see v. 35) ; but 
that, when he walked, his mind generally diverted itself with trifles. 
The Sacra Via, as it is ordinarily written, led from the Porta Tri- 
umphalis to the Forum, and thence along the north side of the Forum 
to the foot of Mons Capitolinus. It was crowded with public build- 
ings, and was a favorite promenade. Quid agis ? = how do you 
do ? Rerum ; with dulcissime, not with agis, as some explain it. Cf. 
pulcherrime rerum, Ov. M. VIII. 49, etc. — 5. Suaviter — est = 
pretty well, as times go. Cupio — vis is a common formula of 
politeness. — 6. Numquid vis quin abeam ? (= Is there anything else 
I can do for you before I go ? Terence, Ad. II. 2. 39) of which num- 
quid vis ? was a shorter form, was a civil mode of saying good-by. 
Occupo = I anticipate him before he has time to speak. — 7 - 10. 
Pluris ; gen. of estimation. Hoc = on that account. Misere — 
quaerens = wanting sadly to get away. Ire . . . consistere ; his- 
torical infinitive, so called. Puero; i. e. the slave who attended 
him. A Roman rarely walked abroad without one or more of them. 
— 11. Cerebri is explained by cerebrosus, S. I. 5. 21. Horace envies 
him the irritability which would make short work with such a fellow. 
— 14 - 16. Here the man, feeling his power, puts on the familiarity 
of an intimate friend, and insists on offering his services and attend- 
ance. Huic — tibi ; i. e. where are you going next ? — 18. Cubat ; 
i. e. is lying sick. Julius Caesar had some pleasure-grounds, which 
he bequeathed to the Roman people, on the right bank of the Tiber, 
a long way from the Sacra Via. — 21. Dorso. Gr. 391. 1. A. & S. 
222, R. 1. Subiit ; final syllable long. See on Ov. M. I. 1 14. Onus ; 
object of subiit. — 22. Nothing is known of Viscus. Pluris ; as in 
v. 7. — 23. Valium. See on S. I. 5. 40. — 24, 25. Quis — canto 
= who can dance more gracefully ? and Hermogenes himself would 
envy my singing. Hermogenes was a famous singer of that day. — 
27 - 34. Quis ( = quibus) — opus = who need thee safe ; i. e. are 
interested in your welfare. The question involves a sneer, but the 
fellow does not mind it. For the construction, cf. S. I. 1. 54. Com- 
posui = I have buried. Felices — aetas is the mental response 
of the poet. Confice = finish me ! Divina, mota, urna ; all ab- 
latives. On urna, cf. II. 3. 26 ; C. III. 1. 16 ; Virg. A. VI. 22. For 



TEHE SATIRES. BOOK I. SATIRE IX. 741 

the elision of a long vowel, cf. S. I. 1. 101 ; E. I. 2. 29 ; Virg. A. II. 
182, etc. — 35-37. Ventum erat. Gr. 301. 3. A. & S. 184. 2 {a) 
and (b). Vestae ; i. e. the temple of Vesta, not far from the Tiber, 
to the west of Mons Palatinus. Gr. 397. 1 (1). A. & S. 211, R. 7 (1). 
Vadato ; i. e. the plaintiff in a suit, in which this fellow was defend- 
ant, and, if he failed to appear, would forfeit his bail and lose his 
cause. Perdere; sc. debebat. — 38. Me. Gr. 669. IV. A. & S. 
305. 1 (2). Ades ; the technical word for giving a person aid and 
advice in court. Hie shows that they were within sight of the court, 
to which he points. — 39 - 41. Stare = to stop. Quo scis. See 
v. 18. Tene ... an. Gr. 526. II. 1. A. & S. 265, R. 2. Sodes. 
Gr. 590. A. & S. 183, R. 3. Key (L. Gr. 1361) says that " sodes must 
be for si voles, I and d being interchanged " ; as in odor and oleo, 
Ulzxes and 'Odvaaevs, etc. — 42. Ut = since. — 43-48. He asks 
abruptly : How do you and Maecenas get on together ? A shrewd 
man, and does n't make himself common. No man ever made a 
better use of his opportunities. Could n't you introduce me to him ? 
I should be happy to play into your hands, and, if I am not very 
much mistaken, we should soon push aside our rivals. Paucorum 
hominum = of few acquaintances ; as in Terence (Eun. III. 1. 18) : 
Immo sic homo est perpaucorum hominum. Adjutorem and ferre se- 
cundas (sc. partes) are terms taken from the stage. Hunc hominem 
= me, like the Greek Tovd' av8pa. Tradere is a conventional term 
for introductions, and submovere (cf. C. II. 16. 10) for the duty of the 
lictor in clearing the way. — 49-52. Horace indignantly declares 
that these are not the terms on which they live with Maecenas, in- 
triguing to get the first place in his favor. — 53 - 60. Sic habet ; 
a literal translation of ovr&s e^et- Velis — habet is ironical, but 
the man does not see it. Quae — virtus. Gr. 453. 4. A. & S. 206 
(18). Possit. Gr. 501. I. A. & S. 264. 1 and {b). So nosset, v. 62. 
Eoque = and for that very reason ; i. e. because he likes to be won 
over. — 61 - 66. Fuscus. See Introd. and C. I. 22. Unde venis ? 
et Quo tendis ? This was a common mode of salutation. Cf. Virg. 
E. IX. 1. Lentissima = unfeeling. Fuscus pretends not to under- 
stand his friend's hints, nods, etc. Male salsus = " the wicked 
wag." Dissimulare . . . urere. See on S. I. 5. 12. — 67-74. 
Certe — oppedere. " I think you had something to say to me in 
private, had you not ? " " True ; I remember : but I '11 take a better 
opportunity. To-day is the Jews' thirtieth Sabbath, you know. You 
would n't think of offending those good people." It is probable that 
Aristius Fuscus knew very little about the Jews, and invented the 
thirtieth Sabbath on the spot, to tantalize his friend (and modern 
critics). There is no reason to suppose that the Jews had any Sab- 
bath that they called the thirtieth. The plural crdfifiara is commonly 



742 NOTES ON HORACE. 

used by the writers of the New Testament for the Sabbath day. Vin. 
Gr. 293. 2(1). Curtis = circumcised. At mi (dat. of possessor) == 
but / have. Huncine. Gr. 186. 1. A. & S. 134, R. 4. Solem 
tam nigrum = diem tarn infaustum. Surrexe. Gr. 234. 3 ; 553. 
III. A. & S. 162. 7 {c) ; 270, R. 2 {a). — 76-78. Licet antestari? 
is the formal way of calling a bystander to witness that there was 
nothing illegal in the conduct of the plaintiff in such a case as the 
above, and that the defendant had resisted, and that force was neces- 
sary. The process was by touching the ear of the person whose tes- 
timony was asked, who could not be compelled to be a witness ; but 
after he had consented, he was bound to appear and give evidence 
if required. Horace was only too glad to help in the forcible re- 
moval of his persecutor, and gave his ear with all readiness. The 
parties begin to wrangle : a crowd of idlers of course forms round 
them, and Horace makes his escape. Vero = in good earnest. 



THE SATIRES. Book II. 

SATIRE VI. — In this Satire, Horace dwells upon the incon- 
veniences of a town life and the delights of the country, the former as 
connected with the importunity of people asking for his influence 
with Maecenas, or for information upon public affairs of which he 
knows nothing, though they will not believe it. 

Whenever Horace touches on matters personal to himself, he 
does it with humor and feeling. He is also very skilful in telling a 
story or representing a dramatic tableau. The fable of the town and 
country mouse could hardly have been better told than it is here. 
The apostrophe to the country beginning O rus, quando te adspiciam, 
and the contrast between a town and country life, are among his most 
natural touches ; and the allusion to his intimacy with Maecenas and 
the envy it had brought upon him, is managed with delicacy towards 
his patron, while it shows in a very few words the mixture of pride 
and annoyance which the feeling against him caused. 

1-5. Non ita = not so (very). Jugis ; adj. with aquae. Super 
his = besides these. It would be super haec in prose. Bene est 
Gr. 353. 2. A. & S. 210, R. 3 {b). Maia nate ; i. e. Mercury, the 
god of gain, and also the protector of poets. Cf. C. I. 10. 6 ; C. II. 
17. 29, etc. Propria = permanent. — 8-13. Veneror = I pray 
for. Cf. C. S. 49. Denormat = disfigures. Thesauro — aravit. 
The Order is : Qui thesauro invento mercatus est ilium ipsum agrum 



THE SATIRES. BOOK II. SATIRE VI. 743 

(quern) mercenarius aravit (i. e. arare solitus erat). He buys the 
field he was formerly hired to plough. Hercules was associated with 
Mercury in various ways ; among others as the god of gain, as he is 
here. There are representations of the two gods in one, which com- 
bined form is called 'Epfj-rjpaKXfjs, and appears to have been very 
common. The notion seems to be that of combining strength and 
cunning. Quod adest; as in C. III. 29. 32. Gratum juvat 
either = satisfies me, for I am grateful ; or = is welcome and satisfies 
me. — 15-19. Piugue as applied to ingenium means heavy, dull. 
Arcem; i. e. his house on the Sabine hills. Cf. C. III. 4. 21. Quid 
— illustrem = what subject should I take in preference to this ; i. e. 
the country to which he retires. Satiris and rausa are instrumen- 
tal ablatives. Pedestri = plain, familiar ; distinguished from prose 
only by the measure. Plumbeus = leaden ; i. e. depressing the 
spirits. Cf. C. II. 14. 15. Gravis = sickly. Libitinae. See on 
C. III. 30. 7. A register of funerals was kept in her temple, and a 
fee was paid for the registration ; hence quaestus. — 20 - 24. Janus 
was peculiarly a Latin divinity, and one of the oldest. Sacrifices were 
offered to him on the first of every month, as well as of his own 
(January), and prayer in the morning of every day. Hence he is 
called Matutinus pater ; and hence he is confounded with the Sun. 
Pater was the title by which he was commonly addressed, and the two 
words were sometimes joined thus : Januspater. See E. I. 16. 59. 
Jane is put in the vocative case by a sort of attraction. . Cf. C. II. 
20. 6. Audire is here used in the sense of appellari, like dicoveiv. 
Unde = from whom ; as in C. I. 12. 17, etc. Sponsor em ; one who 
became security for another. Eja . . . urge ; like Eja age, rumpe 
moras, Virg. A. IV. 569. These are the words of Janus. — 25 - 28. 
Radit == sweeps. Interiore — trahit Cf. Virg. G. II. 481, 482. 
Postmodo — locuto = after having spoken, with a clear and dis- 
tinct voice, what may cost me trouble afterwards. Luctandum ; 
sc. mihi est. — 30 - 35. Precibus = curses. Tu — recurras = 
must you knock down everything in your way, to get back in all haste 
to Maecenas ? Pulses. Or. 486. II. Si . . . recurras = to see if 
you can get back. The use of si (and si forte) in indirect questions 
is very rare, except in phrases where hope or expectation is expressed 
or implied. Cf. Virg. A. I. 181, etc. There is sarcasm in metnori, 
as if he was not likely to forget his duty to the great man. Hoc — 
est; i. e. he feels an inward pleasure at the testimony thus borne to 
his intimacy with Maecenas ; not, he is delighted to get back to 
Maecenas, as some critics explain it. Melli. Gr. 390. 2. A. & S. 
227, R. 2. Atras = (formerly) gloomy ; having been a burying- 
ground before it came into the possession of Maecenas. He says 
that as soon as he gets near Maecenas's house he begins to remember 



744 NOTES ON HORACE. 

a hundred different commissions intrusted to him by his acquaintance. 
They flit about him like a swarm of gnats, or anything else that is 
teasing. Roscius may be anybody. He had pressed Horace to 
meet him next day at the Puteal Libonis, in the Forum. This Puteal 
was probably an enclosed place open at the top, and took its name 
from the stone walls built around wells (putei). The place or its 
neighborhood was the resort of money-lenders. — 36-39. Scribae. 
Horace had been a scriba himself. See Life. Imprimat — tabellis 
= please get Maecenas to seal these tablets ; i. e. as the deputy of 
Augustus in his absence from the city. Gr. 493. 2. A. & S. 262, 
R. 4. — 40 -46. Septimus — propior ; i. e. septimus nondum fini- 
tus, sed ad jinem vergens, propior insequentis anni (i. e. octavi) initio 
(Dillenb.). Some make it mean: the seventh year, and almost the 
eighth, has passed. Fugerit. Gr. 486. I. A. & S. 260, R. 4. 
Dumtaxat ad hoc = at least so far as this. Genus. Gr. 380. 2. 
A. & S. 234. II. R. 3. Thrax ; a gladiator armed like a Thracian 
with a short sword and round shield. Gallina was one of these, and 
Maecenas asks Horace whether he is a match for Syrus, another 
gladiator. Mordent; said of both heat and cold. Rimosa = 
leaky. Bene = safely. — 47-49. Noster = ego ; a. free-and-easy 
expression. Some join it with the next sentence. Spectaverat ; 
sc. si. Gr. 503. 1. A. & S. 261, R. 1. Luserat refers to ball-playing. 
Some give spectaverit, luserit, but all the best MSS. are against them. 
The meaning is : if I go with him to the public games or to play ball, 
"Son of Fortune!" they all cry. — 50-58. Frigidus, etc. Sup- 
pose some bad news has been published in the Forum and been circu- 
lated in the streets. The rostra, which Niebuhr describes as " a stage 
of considerable length, with steps at each end of it," originally sep- 
arated the comitium, where the patricians met, from the space where 
the plebeian assemblies were held, which was properly the Forum, 
though that name was popularly applied to the whole. Here persons 
of all ranks met, and from this centre reports would naturally take 
their rise. Deos ; facete de magnis in republica hominibus (Dillenb.). 
Dacis ; against whom M. Crassus had recently been sent. See on 
C. I. 35. 9. Quid, etc. The veterans who fought at Actium, having 
been sent back to Italy, were discontented, and broke out into mutiny 
because they had no reward. Augustus came from Asia to quell this 
mutiny, and gave money to some of the soldiers, and to others he 
distributed lands in those parts that had been favorable to Antonius. 
Triquetra, triangular, is a name for Sicily. See on Ov. M. V. 347. 
Ut = how, what a. Unum ; i. e. prae aliis omnibus. Silenti = 
silentii. — 59. Misero ; sc. mihi. — 62-64. Ducere. See on C. 
III. 3. 34, and cf. Virg. A. VI. 714. Faba cognata. The popular 
notion was, that Pythagoras had taught his disciples to abstain from 



THE SATIRES. BOOK II. SATIRE VI. 745 

beans, which he connected somehow or other with the human species, 
in his doctrine of metempsychosis. Hence cognata. Satis ; with 
uncta. — 66 -70. Libatis dapibus ; i. e. the master and his friends 
dined 'lightly, leaving the greater part of the dishes to the slaves. 
The dinner is in the atrium, where the images of the Lares were 
placed. Prout is here a monosyllable. Legibus ; the rules laid 
down by the symposiarch (see on C. I. 4. 18) in regard to the 
quantity of wine to be drunk by each guest at each round. Horace's 
guests are free to drink as much or as little as they please : hence 
inaequales calices. — 72 - 76. For the various forms of double indirect 
questions, see Gr. 526. II. A. & S. 265, R. 2. Summum = the 
end proposed ; like re\os- — 77 - 79. Cervius was an old neighbor 
of Horace's, and Arellius must have been a rich man and careful 
of his money. Olim = " once upon a time." — 82 - 89. Asper = 
frugal. Ut tamen = ita tamen tit. Hospitiis. Gr. 384. II. A. 
& S. 223. Some make it the ablative. Quid multa ? See on S. 
I. 6. 82. Ciceris . . . avenae. Gr. 409. 2. A. & S. 220. 1. Avenae 
is the cultivated oat, and longa describes the size of its grain. Virgil 
calls the wild-oat sterilis (G. I. 153), and couples it with the lolitim, 
or tare, with which the host here satisfies himself. Male (= vix) ; 
with tangentis. Superbo = dainty, fastidious. Esset. Gr. 291. 
A. & S. 181. Ador. See on C. IV. 4. 41. — 93. Mini crede is 
parenthetical. — 94. Animas; accusative after sortita. — 95. Quo 
. . . circa ; tmesis. — 98. Repulere = movere. — 100. Nocturni. 
See on vespertinus, Ep. XVI. 51. — 103-105. The sides of the 
couches were sometimes veneered with ivory. Fire is said candere, 
and the flaming drapery of the couch is here described by the same 
word, which is not applied in this sense elsewhere. Fercula was the 
name for the different courses, of which the coena usually consisted of 
three, called prima, secunda, tertia coena. The word, like feretrum, 
contains the root fer of fero, and so its first meaning may have been 
the tray or dish on which the viands were brought. It here means 
the viands themselves. For procul see on Virg. A. III. 13. The re- 
mains of the coena had been collected and put into baskets, and left in 
the triclinium till the morning, and the purple coverings were still 
exposed, waiting till the servants should cover them. — 107-115. 
Succinctus = tucked up ; as the slaves when on duty. See on S. 
I. 5. 5. The duties of the structor are those the host here performs. 
It was his province to arrange the dishes, and see that they were 
properly served up. He runs about, puts one course after another on 
the table [contimiataue dapes), and tastes the dishes, to see if they are 
properly seasoned. Praegustatores were regularly employed only at 
the tables of the emperors. The custom was imitated from Eastern 
courts. Quum subito, etc. The servants coming in early to clean 



746 NOTES ON HORACE. 

the room, interrupt the banqueters, and rouse the watch-dogs, whose 
barking terrifies them still further. There was a dog, or more than one, 
kept in most houses, in the cella ostiarii, the porter's chamber at the 
side of the ostium. Conclave is the general term for any chamber or 
suit of chambers under one lock or bolt. The Molossian dogs were 
celebrated, especially for hunting. 



THE EPISTLES. Book I. 

The Epistles were the latest works of Horace. The First Book 
was published, according to the best critics, in A. U. C. 735 or 736, 
and the two pieces which make up the Second book were probably 
written in 743 and 744. 

For further remarks upon the Epistles, see Life of Horace. 

EPISTLE II. — The person to whom this Epistle is addressed 
was probably the son of M. Lollius, the consul, addressed in C. IV. 9. 
When this Epistle was written, he was at Rome, continuing his educa- 
tion, and Horace was at Praeneste. He had lately been reading 
Homer, and from the examples of the Iliad and Odyssey he takes 
occasion to derive some advice for Lollius, whom he urges to the 
study of philosophy. 

1, 2. Maxime may be == eldest, or it may be merely a familiar 
and good-humored way of addressing the young man, and = most 
noble. Declamas. Boys attended the schools of the rhetorical 
masters before they put on the toga virilis, and there they learnt to 
declaim upon subjects given them from history. They continued 
studying declamation long after they left school, having teachers at 
home, who taught them the higher principles of oratory. Praeneste. 
See on C. III. 4. 21. — 4. Chrysippus was a Stoic, and Crantor an 
Academic philosopher. They were both voluminous writers. — 7. 
Barbariae (sc. terrde) = Phrygia. — 8. Aestus ; a metaphor from 
the ebbing and the flowing of the tide. Cf. Virg. A. IV. 532, 564. — 
9 - 13. Antenor. See on Virg. A. I. 242. At a meeting of the 
Trojan chiefs after the combat of Hector and Ajax, Antenor proposes 
to restore Helen to the Greeks, which Paris flatly refuses, dvriKpv §' 
dir6<pr)iJ.i yvvaiKa \ilv ovk. a.7ro8d)(r<d (II. VII. 362 foil). The repeti- 
tion of inter is not uncommon. Hunc amor. From its position 
this seems to belong to Atriden. The allusion is to Nestor's attempt 
to mediate between Agamemnon and Achilles, when the former angri- 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK I. EPISTLE II. 747 

ly consents to restore Chryseis, whom he loved above Clytemnestra, 
his wife (II. I. 113 foil). — 16. Peccatur. See on concurritur, S. I. 
1. 7. — 19, 20. This is almost a translation of the opening verses of 
the Odyssey. Cf. A. P. 142. — 22. Immersabilis. Cf. C. IV. 4. 65. 
— 23 - 26. How by the directions of Circe, Ulysses eluded the 
charming voices of the Sirens, is related in the twelfth book of the 
Odyssey, and how Circe changed his companions into swine, in the 
tenth book. Cf. on Virg. A. V. 864 and III. 386. — 27 - 31. Nos — 
sumus = we are mere ciphers. Nos means the common sort of men, 
among whom Horace places himself, and all but the sage, who is like 
Ulysses, while the rest are no better than his wife's suitors, gluttons, 
wine-drinkers, and lazy ; or the subjects of Alcinous, king of Phae- 
acia, the host of Ulysses, to whom he relates his adventures. The 
king describes his people thus (Od. VIII. 248) : — 

alel 8' r)fiiv dais re <pi\r), KiOapis re, x°P 0L Te > 
eifiara r e^rjiioifia, \oerpd re Oepfia, ical tvval. 

They were proverbial for good living. In cute curanda = in corpore 
curando. Cessatum — curam = to lull care to sleep. — 32 - 43. 
From the above examples of virtue, especially Ulysses, Horace urges 
his friend to the pursuit of it, and asks whether, if the robber can rise 
before daylight to take away other men's lives, he will not wake up to 
save his own. Si — hydropicus. The ancient physicians pre- 
scribed active exercise for the dropsical. Vigil ; with the subject of 
torquebere. Est; from edere. See on S. II. 6. 89. In annum 
= till next year. Cf. E. I. 11. 23. Dimidium — habet is the 
Greek saying, dpx*l &e T0L fjp>i<rv ttclvtos, attributed variously to 
Hesiod and Pythagoras. Cf. the English proverb : Well begun is 
half done. Rusticus ; sc. sicnt. — 44 - 54. Men put off the day of 
reformation, because they are anxious to make themselves comfort- 
able and rich. Pueris creandis ; with quaeritur, not with beata 
(= rich). Domus = a house in town, since fundus is a landed 
estate with buildings on it. Cf. C. II. 16. 9. Deduxit ; aoristic 
perfect. Valeat . . . oportet = must be sound (both in body 
and mind). Quodcumque. Gr. 475. 3. A. & S. 259, R. 4 (3). — 
55. This is part of the same subject. The pursuit of sensual pleas- 
ure is connected with the pursuit of money, which is wanted for it. 
The pursuit of money leads on to envy, and envy to wrath, so that 
all these pithy sayings hang together. — 58. Siculi — tormentum 
probably alludes to the bull of Phalaris, tyrant of Agrigentum in 
Sicily. It was made of bronze. Persons were put inside, and the 
metal was gradually heated till they were roasted to death. But the 
tyrants of Sicily were proverbial. — 60. Mens = passion, p.evos. — 
61. Poenas festinat = hurries after its revenge ; like o-nevdetv, 



74-8 NOTES ON HORACE. 

which takes an ace. Cf. properet, C. III. 24. 62. Odio ; dative. — 

64. Here he goes back to v. 40, sapere aude ; incipe, — for to be wise 
he must learn, and put himself under those who can teach him. — 

65. Catulus is awkwardly placed. The practice of training dogs by 
means of stuffed animals was perhaps common. Latravit ; here 
transitive. — 69. Cf. Moore : 

You may break, you may ruin the vase, if you will, 
But the scent of the roses will hang round it still. 

— 70. Horace says he cannot wait for the dilatory, or trouble himself 
to keep up with those who are in a great hurry to get on. He means 
he shall go his own way in the pursuit of wisdom. At the same time, 
he hints that young persons are apt to get on a little too fast, and to 
mistake their own powers and attainments. The conclusion is abrupt, 
as Horace's conclusions often are. 

EPISTLE X. — This Epistle is addressed to Aristius Fuscus, 
whose name appears in C. I. 22 and S. I. 9. 61. It appears that his 
habits inclined him to a town life. Horace here praises the country, 
and shows that it is natural for men to love it. He follows this up 
with a few miscellaneous remarks on the pursuit of wealth, how it 
blinds the eyes to the distinction between truth and falsehood, and 
how prosperity only makes adversity harder to bear, and disappoint- 
ment more bitter, and subjects the mind to a galling slavery. 

5. This comparison of the doves is doubtless a sportive one, though 
some of the critics take it seriously. Annuimus = we nod assent ; 
i. e. to each other. — 8. Quid quaeris (sc. ultra) ? is equivalent to 
"in short," "in a word." — 10. He likens himself to the slave who 
ran away from the priest his master, because he fed him too much on 
the sweet cakes offered in sacrifice. He got tired of them, and wanted 
plainer food. These cakes, liba, which the Greeks called TreXavoi, 
were made of flour sweetened generally with honey, and sometimes 
made in the shape of animals as a substitute for more costly sacri- 
fices. — 11. Placentis. Gr. 417. 2. 3). So metallis, v. 39. — 12. 
Horace considers the artificial state of society and mode of life in 
large towns, as all must, to be a wider departure from the natural con- 
dition of man than a country life. Naturae. Gr. 392. II. A. & S. 
228. 1. —15- 17. Tepeant. A. & S. 264, R. 3. Canis ; i. e. the Dog- 
star. Leonis. See on C. III. 29. 18. Momenta = the violence ; i. e. 
of the heat when the sun is in this constellation. Orelli makes it = 
motus, circuitus coelestes. Acutum. See on C. I. 9. 4. — 19. Horace 
asks whether the field, covered with flowers, smells less sweet and 
looks less beautiful than marble floors, laid with mosaic pictures and 
strewed with flowers, or other perfumes. Respecting the Libyan and 
other marbles, see on C. II. 18. 3. By lapillis Horace means the 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK I. EPISTLE XI. 749 

small pieces of different marbles with which the floors were laid, tes~ 
sellae or crustulae, as they were called. Such pavements, which are 
now so costly as only to be found in the richest houses, were formerly 
very common in Italy. They were wrought in colored marbles, or the 
more ordinary ones in white and black. — 20. Plumbum means 
leaden pipes, whieh were called fistulae. Cf. Ov. M. IV. 122. Cis- 
terns were called castella, and there were three sorts : publica, which 
received the water intended for public purposes ; privata, which were 
the common property of several persons who clubbed together to build 
them, and laid pipes to conduct the water to the castella domestica, the 
cisterns they had in their own houses. There were also lacus, or pub- 
lic tanks, for the convenience of those who could not afford to have 
the water brought into, their- houses. — 21. Cf. C. II. 3. 11. — 22. 
Shrubs and flowers were planted in the impluvium, but more largely 
in the peristylhcm, which was an open space at the back of the house, 
surrounded by colonnades. — 25. Mala fastidia == morbid disgusts ; 
i. e. which the rich come to feel in regard to the simple pleasures of 
the country, but which Nature, silently recovering her ground, con- 
trives to supplant. — 26 - 29. Non — falsum = Not he who knows 
not skilfully to compare with Sidonian purple the wool which drinks 
the dye of Aquinum, shall suffer harm more certain or more deep 
than he who cannot tell truth from falsehood. The foreign purples 
(sec on C. II. 16. 36) were most esteemed, and these were imitated by 
the Italians. See E. II. 1. 207. Thefuais was a marine plant from 
which one of these counterfeit dyes was made. Aquinum was a 
large town of Latium, noted as the birth-place of Juvenal. — 30. 
Plus nimio. Gr. 417. 6. A. & S. 256, R. 9.-34-38. Stesicho- 
rus is said to have spoken this fable to the citizens of Himera, when 
they were preparing to confer absolute power on Phalaris. Violens 
expresses the struggle with which the horse won his victory and his 
servitude. — 42. Olim = sometimes. See on C. II. 10. 17. — 43. 
Uret = will gall. — 48. The meaning is obvious, whether the meta- 
phor be taken from machines, or towing-cables, or rope-dancing, or 
halters, or dog-chains, or boys pulling at the two ends of a rope, or 
any other of the ingenious explanations of scholiasts and commenta- 
tors. — 49, 50. Dictabam. Gr. 469. II. 1. A. & S. 145. II. 3. The 
Fanum Vacunae was about three miles from the confluence of the 
Digentia and the Anio, near the modern town Rocca Giovane. Vacuna 
was a Sabine goddess, probably identical with Victoria. Excepto. 
Gr. 431. 4. A. & S. 257, R. 8. 

EPISTLE XI. — This Epistle is addressed to one Bullatius, of 
whom nothing is known. He was travelling in the Aegean and in 
Asia Minor, and was absent longer than Horace wished, or thought 



75° NOTES ON HORACE. 

good for him ; and the object of this letter is to induce him to 
return. 

1-4. The island of Chios in the Aegean was rugged and moun- 
tainous, but had an excellent climate, and was famous for its wines 
and its beautiful women. Lesbos ; an island in the Aegean, famous 
for its vineyards and its climate, its cities and works of art, and also 
for its poets and musicians and statesmen, and the important part it 
played in the history of Greece. Samos (the island) is rough, but 
the town is called concinna from its buildings, among which the tem- 
ple of Juno was conspicuous. See on Virg. A. I. 16. Sardes (see 
on Ov. M. XL 152) was the capital of the Lydian king Croesus, 
whose palace became the residence of the Persian Satraps and was 
beautified by them. Smyrna was one of the most magnificent cities 
of Ionia. Colophon was also in Ionia, on the Hales, near the cele- 
brated temple and oracle of the Clarian Apollo. See on Virg. A. III. 
360. Majora — sordent ? = whether greater or less than report 
makes them, are they not all tame compared with the Campus Mar- 
tius and the Tiber ? Some read minorane, and put an interrogation 
mark after fama. — 5 - 10. Attalicis — una ; i. e. one of the towns 
of the kingdom of Pergamum, bequeathed by Attalus III. to the 
Roman people (see on C. I. I. 12), the principal cities of which 
(jj.r)Tpo7ro\eLs) were Ephesus, Pergamum, Sardes, Smyrna, Lampsacus, 
Cyzicus. Lebedus, in Ionia, was destroyed by Lysimachus, after the 
battle of Ipsus, B. C. 301. It never recovered its former importance, 
and the ruins of the old town probably helped to cause the desolate 
appearance described by Horace. Gabiis. Juvenal mentions it as a 
place of resort for people in humble circumstances. For this town and 
Fidenae see on Virg. A. VI. 773. Horace seems to mean that he himself 
could live contented even in a place like Lebedus, and that he should 
enjoy the fine sea view there. It can hardly mean, as some say, that 
he would like to live there for the sake of the view, even though he were 
cut off from all his friends. — 11 - 21. " But," he goes on to say, 
" there is a time for all things. The traveller, when he gets splashed, 
may be glad of a tavern to retire to and clean himself, but. he would 
not wish to stay there all his life ; and the man who has got chilled 
may be glad of a fire or hot bath, but he does not reckon fires and hot 
baths the chief good of life ; and though you may have been glad to 
get on shore in a foreign land, to escape from a storm, you will surely 
not think it necessary to stay there forever. If a man is in health, 
Rhodes and Mytilene are not the places for him ; so come back 
again while you may, and if you must praise those distant parts, 
praise them at home." It would appear that Bullatius had been a 
good while absent, and meant to remain much longer. For the con- 
dition of the Appian Way, see on S. I. 5. 6. etc. For Rhodos et 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK I. EPISTLE XVI. 75 1 

MytUene see on C. I. 7. 1. The paenula was a thick outer mantle 
worn in bad weather over the toga. The campestre was a linen 
cloth worn round the loins, in games or exercises in which the body 
was otherwise stripped, as also in swimming. — 23 - 30. In annum. 
See on E. I. 2. 38. Effusi — arbiter ; i. e. a place which commands 
(as we say) a wide prospect over the sea (cf. v. 10). Strenua . . . in- 
ertia is a very happy expression, and has become proverbial for a 
do-nothing activity, such exertions as tend to no point and produce 
no fruits. Navibus atque quadrigis ; i. e. running about by sea and 
land. Quadriga is any carriage drawn by four horses (abreast, two 
under the yoke attached to the pole, and two outside, funales, fastened 
by traces), though the word is more generally used for a triumphal or 
racing chariot than for a travelling carriage. Ulubris ; a small town 
of Latium, said to have been in a disagreeable marshy locality. 

EPISTLE XVI. — Nothing is known of the Quintius to whom 
this Epistle is addressed. After a short description of his residence, 
Horace turns rather abruptly to a discourse upon the liability of men 
to be deceived in respect to their own goodness and that of others by 
the judgment of the multitude. 

2, 3. Arvo — ulmo ; i. e. whether I cultivate it as an arable farm 
or an orchard, a sheep farm or a vineyard. Some take it as an indi- 
rect description of his farm. Opulentet is found in no earlier writer. 
— 5-7. The valley of the Licenza is the only one which cuts the 
range of mountains extending from the Campagna above Tibur to 
Carseoli, about forty-five miles from Rome. Hence continui 
montes. The valley lies nearly north and south, as here de- 
scribed. — 8 - 11. Temperiem laudes ; since it is cool in sum- 
mer and warm in winter, both the Sirocco (plumbeus Auster, S. II. 
6. 18) and the north wind ( Tramontana ) being excluded. Quid — 
Tarentum = Why, if I tell you that my thorns bear abundantly the 
red cornel and the plum, that my oaks and ilexes delight my pigs 
with plenty of acorns, and their master with plenty of shade, you 
may say that it is the woods of Tarentum brought nearer to Rome. 
Fruge is nowhere else used for acorns. — 13. Hebrum. See on 
Virg. A. I. 3 1 7. — 14. Infirmo — alvo ; referring to douche baths 
on the head and stomach, which were recommended by ancient phy- 
sicians. — 15. A place may be dulcis from association ; it can only 
be amoenus from its climate, its beauties, etc. — 17. Tu — audis = 
your life is what it should be, if you are careful to be what you are 
accounted. On audis, cf. S. II. 6. 20. — 18-23. Roma; in appo- 
sition with the subject of jactamus. All Rome, he says, has long 
spoken of you as a happy man : but I am afraid lest you should trust 
the judgment of others about you, rather than your own. Sapiente. 



752 NOTES ON HORACE. 

Gr. 417. 5. A. & S. 256, R. 14. Occultam — unctis. The sick 
man conceals his fever that he may not lose his dinner, but he is be- 
trayed by the trembling of his hands (Dillenb.). Unctis ; because the 
ancients used their fingers instead of knives and forks. Some under- 
stand it to mean, more greasy than usual because of the tremor. — 
24. Stultorum is emphatic : they are fools, whose, etc. Pudor 
malus = a false shame. — 25 - 32. Tibi ; with pugnata. Gr. 388. 
4. A. & S. 225. II. Quintius had no doubt seen service ; but, says 
Horace, if any one were to speak of your campaigning in such lan- 
guage as this (then he quotes two lines, said to be taken from a 
panegyric of Varius on Augustus), you would recognize it as meant, 
not for you, but for Caesar. But if you allow yourself to be called 
wise and correct, does your life correspond to that name any more 
than your military exploits to the above encomium ? Literally, " Do 
you answer in your own name," or " on your own account ? " Vacuas 
aures are ears which, being unoccupied, are ready to receive what is 
spoken. Tene — Juppiter = Whether thy people care for thy safety 
more, or thou for theirs, may Jove ever doubtful keep, he who watch- 
es over both thee and Rome ; i. e. May thy country ever care for thee, 
and thou for thy country, with an equal affection. Pateris - vo- 
cari; a Grecism, as in C. I. 2. 43. Socles. See on S. I. 9. 41. 
Neinpe, etc. Quintius is supposed to answer : Yes, surely, I like 
to be called good and wise, and so do you. — 34 - 45. Nay, replies 
Horace, such praise as this is given one day, and may be withdrawn 
the next ; and you are obliged to resign your claim, because you 
know you do not deserve it. But if a man attacks me with charges 
I know I am innocent of, is that to affect me and make me blush ? 
Vir — quis ? The answer is to this effect : In the eyes of the 
people the good man is he who never transgresses the laws ; who 
is seen acting as judex in important causes, and has never been 
known to be corrupt ; whom men choose as their sponsor, and whose 
testimony carries weight in court ; but all the while the man's own 
neighborhood and family may know him to be foul within, though 
fair enough without. Consulta patrum = senatus consulta ; leges 
= laws, properly so called; jura = legal rights and rules of law. 
Quo . . . judice ; abl. abs. — 46 - 56. These verses are a dialogue 
between a slave and his master ; the application, being easily made, 
is not expressed. Not to be very wicked does not make a man good ; 
nor is it sufficient to abstain from crime through fear of punishment : 
our motive should be the love of virtue for her own sake. Sabellus 
may mean the villicus, or it may be taken for any plain-judging man. 
Many suppose Horace means himself. — 57 - 62. Vir — tribunal ; 
i. e. he whom the people believe to be good, whom everybody turns 
to look at as he walks through the Forum, and looks up to when he 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK I. EPISTLE XVI. 753 

speaks in the courts. Vel porco vel bove. The animals most 
commonly sacrificed by the Romans were sheep, pigs, and oxen. On 
public occasions these three were sacrificed together, and the sacrifice 
was called suovetaurilia, being a combination of the three names. 
Jane pater. See on S. II. 6. 20. Silent devotion was not prac- 
tised or understood by the ancients, any more than it is by the 
heathen or Mahometans now : fiera (fxovrjs cv^crOaL del is reported 
to have been a saying of Pythagoras. Silent prayers were supposed 
to be a veil either for improper petitions, or magical incantations, or 
something wrong. Laverna was a goddess, who, like Mercury, pre- 
sided over thieving. Justo. Gr. 547. II. A. & S. 205, R. 6. — 
63, 64. Qui = how. In — assem. Persius, speaking of a man 
who was above sordid ways, says (V. 1 10) : Inque luto fixam possis 
transcendere nummum, where there is a Scholium which says that 
boys used to fasten an as to the pavement, and amuse themselves 
with watching people stop to pick it up. Horace may refer to this 
trick, or he may mean no more than stooping to pick up an as from 
the mud. — 67 - 72. The man who is ever hurrying after money, 
and swallowed up in love of it, has cast away his arms, and run away 
from the ranks of virtue. If you catch him, do not put him to death, 
but sell him for a slave, which is all he is fit for. He may do good 
service in keeping cattle, or ploughing, or going with his master, the 
mercator, to sea, replenishing the market, and so forth. The law- 
writers derive seruus from servare, as prisoners kept for slavery were 
not put to death. Annona properly signifies the year's supply of pro- 
visions from the harvest. Penus signifies provisions of all sorts ; here 
it means all sorts of imported provisions. — 73 - 79. The virtuous 
and wise man can speak to Fortune as Dionysus (Bacchus) did to 
Pentheus. The scene alluded to is that in the Bacchae of Euripides, 
vv. 489 foil. Vv. 495, 496 are almost literally translated in vv. 77, 78. 
Pentheus, king of Thebes, hearing that a young stranger has come 
to his country, giving himself out to be Dionysus, and has tempted 
all the women to go out and do honor to him, sends his servants to 
apprehend him. The god allows himself to be taken, and, when 
brought before the king, describes himself as the servant of Dionysus. 
Then follows a dialogue, of which the verses above referred to form 
part. The application is obvious. The good man can bid defiance 
to the reverses of Fortune, since at any time he wishes he can call 
death to his assistance, — a bad doctrine for good men. Cicero did 
not approve of it. He says : vetat Pythagoras injussu imperatoris, id 
est Dei, de praesidio et statione vitae decedere (Cat. Maj. c. 20). Ultima 
linea; a metaphor from the line in the Circus which marked both 
the starting-point and the goal of the race. 

48 



754 NOTES ON HORACE. 

EPISTLE XX. — With this composition addressed to his book 
(which can hardly be any other than this collection of Epistles) 
Horace sends it forth to take its chance in the world. He addresses 
it as a young and wanton maiden, eager to escape from the retirement 
of her home and to rush into dangers she knows nothing of. He tells 
her it will be too late to repair her error when she discovers it ; that 
she will be caressed for a time and then thrown away, and, when her 
youth and the freshness of her beauty are gone, she will end her days 
in miserable drudgery and obscurity. He concludes with a descrip- 
tion of himself, his person, his character, and his age. 

1, 2. The Sosii were Horace's booksellers (see A. P. 345), and 
their shop may have stood near temples of Vertumnus and Janus, at 
which Horace Says his book is casting longing glances. The Scholi- 
asts say they were brothers. The outside skin of the parchment-rolls 
was polished with pumice-stone, to make them look well. — 3-5. 
The capsae or scrinia, in which manuscripts were kept, were locked, 
or sealed, or both ; and women and young persons were locked or 
sealed up in their chambers, that they might not get into mischief, 
which restraint Horace says they liked, if they were chaste. He 
professes to reproach his book for being tired of staying at home, and 
being shown only to his friends, and wanting to go out to be exposed 
for sale, to which purpose he had not trained it. — 8. As applied to 
the book, this means that it will be rolled up and put into a case, and 
not taken out again. The metaphorical language is kept up in the 
following words, in peccantis, and in the notion of its being thrown 
aside when the freshness of youth shall have left it. — 9, 10. Quodsi 
— augur = But if the prophet is not blinded by his aversion to the 
offender ; i. e. if I am not led by my aversion to your wantonness to 
prophesy too harshly of your fate. A etas is used for any time of life, 
according to the context ; but more frequently for old age than youth. 
— 13 - 16. You will be shipped off to Utica (in Libya), or to Ilerda 
(Lerida) in Spain, or anywhere else in the remote provinces, tied up 
as a bundle of goods (vinctus), and I shall laugh, for what is the use 
of trying to save such a wilful thing ? as the driver said, when his ass 
would go too near the edge of the precipice, and he drove him over 
in a passion. Compare A. P. 467. — 18, 19. This keeps up the 
image in v. 10. Horace says his book will be reduced in its old age 
to the poor people's schools in the back streets. His writings soon 
took their place with Homer and Virgil in all the schools. Juvenal 
says (VII. 226) : Quot stabant pueri, quum totus decolor esset Flaccus, 
et haereret nigro fuligo Maroni. — 19, 20. Quum — aures ; i. e. in 
the heat of the day, and before dinner in the baths, when people read 
to themselves or to one another. The poet supposes that his book 
may be popular for a time. Cf. v. 10. Me — re. Cf. S. I. 6. 6, 46, 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK II. EPISTLE I. 755 

47. — 23. Belli; i. e. in his campaigning with Brutus. — 24. Soli- 
bus aptum ; i. e. fond of warm weather. — 27, 28. Decembres ; 
since he was born in that month. See Life. He completed his forty- 
fourth year in December, B. C. 21, and in that year M. Lollius (see 
C. IV. 9) and Q. Aemilius Lepidus were consuls. Duxit means, 
had him for a colleague. Some think it refers to the fact that Lepidus 
was elected after Lollius, to fill the vacancy caused by the declination 
of Augustus. 



THE EPISTLES. Book II. 

EPISTLE I. — Suetonius, in his Life of Horace, says that Augus- 
tus, after reading the Epistles, complained that none had been 
addressed to him, whereupon the poet wrote the following Epistle 
to the Emperor. 

After introducing compliments to Augustus, Horace discourses 
upon the condition of Roman poetry. He remonstrates against the 
undue admiration of the old poets then prevalent ; shows that the 
Greeks were more just and discriminating in their appreciation of 
their own poets than the Romans ; ridicules the fashionable mania 
for verse-making ; sets forth the exalted mission of the true poet ; 
sketches the history of poetry in Italy ; dwells upon the degradation 
of the drama occasioned by the capricious and depraved taste of the 
day ; and finally appeals to Augustus to protect and encourage poets, 
even though the best of them, as he goes on to show, have their fault*, 
and weaknesses. 

5. Cf. C. III. 3. 9 foil. —10. Qui — hydram. See C. IV. 4. 6* 
foil, and cf. Virg. A. VI. 803. — 11, 12. Fatales. Virgil (A. VIII. 
291) says that Hercules performed his labors fatis Junonis iniqicae. 
Comperit — domari. Cf. C. III. 24. 31, 32. — 13, 14. Urit — 
positas = for that man scorches with his brightness who overpowers 
capacities inferior to his own ; i. e. inferior minds are galled by the 
consciousness of their inferiority, and extinguished by his greatness. 
Artes here probably means attainments of any kind. — 15-17. Cf. 
C. III. 5. 1 foil. Augustus during his life refused to receive the honor 
of a temple at Rome, and in the provinces he would only have them 
if the name of Rome was coupled with his own. He had two of this 
sort in Asia Minor, and one built by Herod the Great in Caesarea. 
After his death, several temples were erected to him, and his worship 
was regularly established, but the altars Horace speaks of were those 
which were raised in the provinces. Jurandasque — aras. Cf. 



756 NOTES ON HORACE. 

Ov. M. II. 46. The person who swore by the altar laid his hand 
upon it, and invoked the name of the divinity to whom it was con- 
secrated. Nil — fatentes. Cf. C. IV. 2. 37. — 18 - 22. But, con- 
tinues Horace, they who are wise in honoring you while among them, 
are not wise in their excessive admiration for all other things that are 
old and gone, and contempt for things modern. In uno = in this 
alone ; opposed to cetera. — 23 - 27. Veterum ; neuter. Tabulas 

— sanxerunt. In B. C. 452 ten patricians were appointed, with 
absolute powers for one year, to draw up a code of laws, of which the 
greater part was finished in that year, and engraved upon ten tables 
of ivory or bronze. In the following year the decemvirate was re- 
newed, and two more tables were added. These tables contained the 
fundamental principles of Roman law to the latest times. Down to 
Cicero's time they were committed to memory by boys at school. 
Gabiis. Cf. E. I. n. 7. How Gabii came into the hands of the Ro- 
mans is told by Livy, I. 53 foil. Gabiis and Sabinis are both governed 
by cum. The Sabines were noted for the strictness of their morals. 
Cf. Virg. G. II. 532. Aequata = made on equal terms. The col- 
lege of Pontiffs had books (libros) on matters pertaining to their 
office, which were said to date back to the days of Numa. Annosa 

— vatum; old books of Sibylline oracles and other prophecies. 
Dictitet — locutas = would persist in affirming that the Muses 
themselves had uttered them (not on Parnasus, but) on the Alban 
Mount ; as if the Muses had left their favorite haunt for Latium. — 
30. Itoquamur. Gr. 501. I. 1. A. & S. 264, N. 3. — 31 - 33. Nil 
intra — duri ; i. e. we may believe any absurdity, or disbelieve our 
senses : we are at the height of good fortune ; we paint, we sing, we 
wrestle, better than the Greeks (which every one knows is not the 
case). — 34. Dies = vetustas. — 36-40. Decidit = ??wrtuus est 
Cf. C. IV. 7. 14. Excludat — finis = let some limit shut out dis- 
pute ; i. e. let us draw a line somewhere. Mense. Gr. 418. A. & S. 
257, R. 16 (1). — 45. The allusion is to the story of Sertorius, who, 
to show his soldiers the policy he chose to pursue, set a large strong 
man to pull out the tail of an old and infirm horse, by one effort, and 
on the other hand a small, weak man to pull out the tail of a young 
and vigorous horse, hair by hair. Of course, the former failed, while 
the latter soon finished his task. — 47-49. Cadat. Gr. 522. II. 
A. & S. 263. 4. Ratione — acervi seems to be an allusion to what 
Cicero (de Div. II. 4) calls argumentatio acervalis, from the Greek 
(TdapiTTis (from capos = acervus), a series of syllogisms, in which the 
conclusion of each forms the premise of the next. Fastos ; sc. con- 
sulares. Libitina. See on C. III. 30. 7. 

50 - 54. Ennius was born at Rudiae, in Calabria, B. C. 239. He 
followed the opinions of Pythagoras, holding the doctrine of the 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK II. EPISTLE I. 757 

transmigration of souls ; and in his epic poem, called Annates, he de- 
clared that the spirit of Homer had passed into his body, having 
meanwhile inhabited, among others, that of a peacock. This is what 
Horace alludes to in somnia Pythagorea. He says, however, that 
Ennius need not mind what was thought of his professions and his 
dreams, since he was certainly worshipped as if he were a second 
Homer. Fortis ; not for his personal bravery (though he saw some 
service), but for the boldness of his style. Naevius. Cn. Naevius 
was born about the middle of the third century B. C. and wrote plays 
and an epic poem on the first Punic war, in which he served. Cicero 
often has non est in interrogative sentences. Paene recens = as if 
he were almost modern. — 56. Pacuvius ; nephew to Ennius, born 
in Calabria, about B. C. 220. His chief compositions were tragedies, 
mostly translations from the Greek. Cicero places him at the head 
of Roman tragedians. Accius, born B. C. 170, was another tragic 
writer, praised by Cicero and Quintilian. Alti = lofty, sublime. — 
57. Comedies written after a Greek model, with Greek scenes and 
characters, were called palliatae ; those of which the incidents and 
persons were Roman were called togatae, from the dress of the actors, 
the Greek pallium corresponding to the Roman toga. Afranius wrote 
principally togatae, and Horace says that, according to the judgment 
of the critics, his toga would have suited Menander ; that is, Menan- 
der need not have been ashamed of his plays. Afranius was some 
years younger than Caecilius and Terence. Menander flourished at 
Athens in the latter part of the fourth century B. C. — 58. Plautus ; 
a native of Sarsina, in Umbria, who flourished about 200 B. C. See 
v. 170 foil. Properare may refer to the rapid movement and spirited 
action of his plays. Epicharmus, a native of Cos, lived from B. C. 
540 to the age of ninety. He is commonly called the inventor of 
comedy. — 59. Caecilius ; a comic poet born at Mediolanum 
(Milan). He died B. C. 168, the year after Ennius. P. Terentius 
Afer, who flourished a little later, was a slave in the family of P. 
Terentius Lucanus, whose praenomen and gentile name he took, on 
his manumission, retaining as a cognomen the name which he derived 
from his place of birth, Carthage. Arte may refer either to the style 
or to the structure of his plays. — 62. Livi T. Livius Andronicus 
is spoken of by Quintilian as the first Roman poet. He died about 
B. C. 221 — 63. Peccat Gr. 501. I. 1 (for the principle). A. & S. 
264, R. 3 and R. 4. — 66 - 68. Dure = harshly. Ignave = care- 
lessly. Cf. A. P. 445. Some make it =frigide, langnide. Mecum = 
with me, as I do. Jove aequo is the opposite of Jove non pro- 
bante, C. I. 2. 19. —70. Orbilius (see Life of Horace) was a native 
of Beneventum, who came to Rome in his fiftieth year (B. C. 63) and 
set up a school. He lived in great poverty, in a garret, to nearly a 



758 NOTES ON HORACE. 

hundred years of age, having long lost his memory. His townsmen 
were proud of him and erected a marble statue in his honor. — 72. Ex- 
actis = perfectis. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 3. — 73. Emicuit 
== ex insperato apparuit. — 75. Ducit venditque = it brings for- 
ward and sells ; i. e. gives a value to it. — 79. Crocum. The 
stage was often strown with flowers and sprinkled with a perfume ex- 
tracted from the crocus. Cf. Lucretius, II. 416 : Et quum scena 
croco Cilici perfusa recens est ; and Ov. Art. Am. 105 : Nee fuerant 
liquido pulpita rubra croco. Atta was a writer of comedies, who died 
B. C. 78. — 81 - 85. Patres = seniores. All the old men, Horace 
says, cry out against my impudence for venturing to find fault with 
that which Aesopus and Roscius acted : but the real reason is that 
they consider that nothing can be right but what satisfies them, or 
they cannot bear to throw away as men what they got by heart as 
boys. Claudius Aesopus, the tragic actor, and Q. Roscius, the comic 
actor, were both intimate friends of Cicero. DocUis refers probably 
to the study he gave to his profession. — 86-89. He who praises 
the songs of the Salii, which he understands no better than I do, 
does so not from love of them, but envy of us. These songs in honor 
of Mars were very old and very obscure. — 93. Positis . . . bellis ; 
i. e. after the Persian war, B. C. 480. Nugari ; i. e. to devote itself 
to arts which are nugae in comparison with war : not said contemptu- 
ously. — 94 - 100. Vitium = luxury. Labier. Gr. 239. 6. A. & S. 
162.6. Suspendit vultum mentemque = attentissime spectavit. 
Petiit . . . reliquit ; with Graecia, not puella. The meaning is : like 
a spoiled child, what eagerly she sought soon satiated she left. — 101. 
Horace introduces the example of Athens to show that greatness was 
reached by their love, not of what was old, but what was new. Peace 
and prosperity brought with it tastes and elegances of a high order ; 
and though, no doubt, there was fickleness in the pursuit of these 
things, this was to be expected, he says, and may be excused, seeing 
what human nature is. Odio. Gr. 390. 2. A. & S. 227, R. 2. — 
103. Horace goes on to compare the change which had come upon 
the character of the Romans through their new taste for poetry, with 
that which passed upon the Athenians when they turned from arms to 
the arts of peace, and he justifies the change (103 - 167). — 104, 105. 
Mane — vigilare. Cf. S. I. 1. 10. Cautos — nummos ; i. e. to 
lend money on good security. Some make nominibus dative, some 
ablative. — 110 - 113. Comas ; accusative of specification. Dic- 
tant ; i. e. dictate to the slave who writes them down. Scribere ; 
pres. for fut. inf. A. & S. 268, R. 3. The Parthians were proverbially 
false and treacherous. Prius — sole. Gr. 431. 3. A. & S. 257, N. 
4, which is true of prius and nisi as well as non prius, non nisi. — 
117. Indocti doctique. Cf. C. I. 1. 29. — 118, 119. Avarus — 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK II. EPISTLE I. 759 

est = is not readily given to avarice. Cf. E. II. 2. 13. — 121-123. 
Ridet = laughs at ; transitive. Socio. Cf. C. III. 24. 60. Sili- 
quis ; the pods or husks of any leguminous vegetable, particularly 
the siliqua Graeca, a plant which produces long pods filled with a 
sweetish pulp. It has no English name. Pane secundo; bread 
made of inferior flour. — 126 - 131. The poet forms the speech and 
chastens the minds of the young ; he records great deeds, furnishes 
great examples, consoles the poor and sick. Format. Cf. C. III. 
24. 54 ; A. P. 307, etc. Orientia tempora = the dawn of life. — 
132-138. Castis — preces. See C. S. Introd. Praesentia — 
sentit. Cf. C. I. 35. 2 and Virg. E. I. 42. Coelestes aquas = rain 
from heaven. Cf. C. S. 31. Docta prece; i. e. quam doaiit poeta. 
Avertit morbos. Cf. C. S. 64. Manes ; worshipped at the Le- 
muria, a great annual festival celebrated on the 9th, nth, and 13th of 
May. Here the name seems to embrace all the infernal deities (di 
inferi as opposed to di superi) as well as the spirits of the dead. — 
139. Fortes. Cf. Virg. G. II. 472. — 143. Tellurem; worshipped 
among the dii inferi, or Manes. Porco. See on E. I. 16. 38. Sil- 
vanum. Cf. C. III. 29. 23 ; Ep. II. 22 ; Virg. G. I. 20, etc. — 144. 
Genium. See on Virg. G. I. 302,. and cf. E. II. 2. 187 ; A. P. 210. — 
145. The Fescennina carmina were a sort of rude jesting dialogue 
carried on in extempore verse at these rustic festivals. They were so 
called from the Faliscan town Fescennia or Fescenniu?n. From these 
verses, which were harmless enough (cf. Virg. G. II. 386), others took 
their name which were more licentious and scurrilous. — 152. The 
writing of scurrilous verses was one of the few offences made capital by 
the XII. Tables (Cic. Repub. IV. 10). —154. Fustis =fustuarii; 
putting to death by beating with clubs. — 155. Redacti ; sc. poetae. — 
156. Graecia — cepit = conquered Greece enslaved -her savage 
conqueror. The taking of Syracuse by Marcellus, B. C. 212, led to 
the introduction into Rome of a taste for Greek art. In B. C. 146, 
Corinth was taken by Mummius, and Southern Greece was formed 
into the Roman province of Achaia. Horace had probably both 
these periods in his mind, as well as the conquest of Southern Italy, 
in the towns of which were some of the finest works of Grecian art. 
The first play copied from the Greek was not exhibited at Rome till 
after the first Punic war, which' ended in B. C. 241. — 158. Defluxit 
= ceased to flow. It was the most ancient Roman measure, and, ac- 
cording to Niebuhr, continued in use till about B. C. 100. Horace says 
traces of the old rudeness remained in his day, probably in the less 
polished mimi, and in the Fescennina carmina, which were not extinct. 
— 161. Serus ; sc. Romanus. — 162. Post — bella ; with quie- 
tus. — 163. Thespis is introduced as the reputed founder of Greek 
tragedy. It is doubtful whether any of his plays were translated by 



760 NOTES ON HORACE. 

or known to the Roman tragedians. Cf. A. P. 275, 276. — 164. Si 

— posset = whether he could translate (their works) as they de- 
served. For the construction, see on S. II. 6. 31. Dillenb. makes 
rem depend on both tentavit and vertere ; but it seems better, with 
Orelli, to take it only with the former. — 167. Sed — lituram = but 
ignorantly thinks an erasure discreditable, and shuns it. That is, 
they were bold enough in their style, and had the spirit of tragedy in 
them, but they did not look sufficiently to the correction and polish- 
ing of their language. — 168. Ex medio = from common life. 
Horace says comedy is supposed to be very easy, because the matter 
is common ; but, in fact, it gives more trouble in proportion to the 
readiness with which it is criticised and faults are detected and con- 
demned. The following remarks on the stage are introduced for the 
purpose of deprecating the excessive admiration and support bestowed 
on the drama at the expense of other poetry (168-213). — 170-176. 
It would appear that Horace had no great opinion of Plautus, all 
whose greatness, he says, lay in the drawing of small parts. Dosse- 
nus, who is not mentioned elsewhere, must have been a comic writer 
of the day. Pulpita ; the front part of the stage where the actors 
spoke. Socco ; the low shoe worn by comic actors. Cf. Milton 
( V Allegro ) : " Jonson's learned sock." Horace means that Dossenus 
was careless in composition, which he expresses by his running about 
the stage with loose slippers. His only care, he says, is to make 
money. — 177. Gloria. Cf. S. I. 6. 23.-180, 181. Valeat — 
opimum ; i. e. farewell the stage for me, if applause is to make me 
fat and the loss of it lean. — 182-188. The interruptions to the 
regular drama which Horace here mentions were of common occur- 
rence. The people sometimes insisted on having a bear-bait or a 
boxing-match to amuse them, in spite of the remonstrances of the 
equites in the front rows, who, however, Horace says, were them- 
selves taken too much with processions and shows that appealed 
more to the eye than to the ear. Incertos = erring ; i. e. easily 
dazzled and deluded. — 189, Aulaea. See on Qv. M. III. 11 1. — 
191-193. Regum fortuna; i. e. reges infelices. Ebur; i. e. works 
of art in ivory. Corinthus = vasa Corinthia. See on Ephyreiaque 
aera, Virg. G. II. 464. — 194. Democritus ; a celebrated Greek 
philosopher, born at Abdera in Thrace, about B. C. 46.0. Juvenal 
(X. 33) says : Perpeluo risu pulmonem agitare solebat Democritus. He 
was known as "the laughing philosopher." — 195, 196. Diversum 

— camelo ; i. e. the camelopard or giraffe. Genus ; in apposition 
with panthera. White elephants are not common, being lusus naturae, 
not a distinct species. — 198 - 200. Mimo here = histrione. Scrip- 
tores surdo = he would think that the writers (of the play) were 
telling the story to a deaf ass. — 202. Garganum, See on C. II. 97. 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK II. EPISTLE I. 761 

— 204. Divitiae; i. e. splendidae vestes. Cf. A. P. 215. — 207. 
Lana — veneno ; i. e. his fine clothes. The different shades of pur- 
ple dye were obtained by different mixtures of the juices of the murex 
and the picrpura, two kinds of shellfish common on the coasts of 
Italy. The violet color was much in fashion at this time, together 
with the scarlet peculiar to Tarentum. The Tarentines imitated all 
the foreign varieties. But these imitations, whether made from the 
fish or the fuacs, never came up to the original dyes, and were easily 
detected. See on E. I. 10. 26. — 208-213. Quae recusem ; i. e. 
what his nature refuses to do, what he has no capacity for. Lau- 
dare maligne = " damn with faint praise." Horace denies that he 
is disposed to detract from the merits of good dramatic poets ; on the 
contrary, he considers that he who could succeed in exciting his feel- 
ings with fictitious griefs and fears, and transport him in imagination 
to distant places, could do anything he chose to try, dance on a tight 
rope if he pleased ; in which there is a little jocular irony perhaps. 
— 215, 213. Quam ; depending on the magis in malunt Curam 

— brevem = pay a passing attention.' Munus — dignum ; the 
library mentioned in C. I. 31. Introd. — 220. The man who damages 
his own vines hurts himself more than any one else, and this is the 
meaning of the proverb. Horace goes on jocularly to relate many 
offences of poets arising out of their want of tact and knowledge of 
the world. — 223. Loca ; for locos. Gr. 141. A. & S. 92. 2. Re- 
volvimus = we read again. — 225. Tenui deducta filo ; a met- 
aphor from spinning : fine-spun, elegant. — 229 - 231. Aedituos. 
The word means the keeper of a temple. Horace says, it is worth 
while to see what kind of persons should be intrusted with the keep- 
ing of the fame of Augustus, what poets should be allowed to tell of 
it, — and with this subject he concludes. — 233, 234. Choerilus of 
Iasos was a poet who accompanied Alexander and wrote verses on 
his battles. Cf. A. P. 357. Male natis versibus means verses made 
by a poet who was not born such, seeing that poeta nascitur nonfit. 
Versibus; dative with rettulit : owed to his verses. Philippos; 
gold coins with Philip's head on them, the Macedonian stater. Its 
value is reckoned at about $ 5.67. — 236. Atrameuta. Ink was 
used by the ancients. The Greeks called it fieXav, the Romans atra- 
meiitum scriptorium or librarium } to distinguish it from shoemaker's 
dye, also called atramentum, and a paint which had the same name. 
Horace says it is a common thing for poets to defile great deeds with 
bad verses, as the fingers are defiled when they handle ink. — 239, 
240. This story — that Alexander would not suffer himself to be 
painted by any but Apelles — is referred to by Cicero, Pliny, and 
Plutarch. Lysippo. For the ablative see on E. I. 16. 20. He was 
a younger contemporary of Apelles, and wrought almost entirely in 



762 NOTES ON HORACE. 

bronze. — 242. Videndis = dijudicandis. Doderlein makes viden- 
das artes = eas quae visu percipiantur, ut pingendi, etc. — 244. The 
dulness of the Boeotians was proverbial. — 246. Varius. See on 
S. I. 5. 40. — 248. Signa ; carved or cast figures in general, statua 
being limited to a full-length figure. — 251. Repentes per humum 
is explained by Musa pedestri, S. II. 6. 17. — 254-256. Auspiciis. 
See on C. I. 7. 27. Janum. See on Virg. A. I. 294. Farthis. 
See on C. I. 2. 22, and cf. C. III. 5. 4 ; C. S. 53, etc. — 262. Qnis ; 
with both discit and deridet. Horace says men are more apt to 
remember what is ridiculous than what is good and serious ; and 
therefore it is not pleasant to have one's name associated with silly 
verses or an ugly wax image such as the admirers of public men might 
think to honor them with. — 267. Pingue. See on S. II. 6. 14. — 
268-270. Horace speaks of being stretched out in an open box 
(the sandapila, or bier used for the poor) as if he were a corpse being 
carried to the common burial ground, that is, to the grocer's shop. 
Vicum ; probably the vicus Thurarius. Horace means that the pane- 
gyric will probably be sold for wrapping-paper, and both he and the 
author go to oblivion together. 

EPISTLE II. — This is one of the most finished and most agree- 
able of the Epistles. It is addressed to Julius Florus, in reply to his 
friend's complaint that he had not sent him any verses. It furnishes 
materials for a considerable part of Horace's biography, his poetical 
career in particular. 

1-3. Neroni; i. e. Tiberius Claudius Nero. See C. IV. 4. In- 
trod. Natum — Gabiis ; i. e. anywhere you please. For Gabii see 
on E. I. 11. 7. — 5. Nummorum ; i. e. sesterces. Gr. 713. A. & S. 
327. The sum was about $ 300. Much larger sums were given for 
handsome slaves, and this boy's accomplishments, if they were real, 
would make him worth a good price. There would be reason, there- 
fore, to suspect, in such a case, that the owner was anxious to get rid 
of him. — 7 - 11. The literati were a separate class in the slave family, 
and were subdivided into anagnostae or lectores (who read to their 
masters, chiefly at their meals, or, if their masters were authors, they 
read their productions aloud for the benefit of the guests), and librarii 
or scribae, used for writing from dictation, taking care of the library, 
keeping accounts, etc., and hence called pueri or servi a studiis, ab 
epistolis, a bibliotheca, notarii, etc. There were also architects, sculp- 
tors, painters, engravers, and other artists, who all came under the 
same general head of literati. The boy in this place might also be 
put among the cantores or symphoniaci, the choir or band who sang 
and played to their master at meals. In short, he was fit for any of 
the above employments, according to his owner's estimate ; which he 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK II. EPISTLE II. 763 

professes to put in a modest way (hence the diminutive, lilerulis), for 
fear he should seem to be puffing his property, and so depreciate its 
value. Argilla — uda ; i. e. you can mould him like moist clay. — 
12 - 15. Meo — aere = I am poor, (but live) on my own means ; 
i. e. what I have is my own. Aes proprium, sztum, etc., is opposed 
to aes aliemcm, other people's money, i. e. a debt. Nemo — idem. 
He professes to deal as a friend. The mangones were slave-dealers, 
a class in no favor, but often very rich. The name is derived from 
the Greek [idyyavov, ^.ayyavevco, to juggle, cheat. Seniel — ha- 
benae = once he was in fault, and hid himself under the stairs for 
fear of a flogging. It would appear that a whip was hung up in some 
conspicuous place in terrorem. — 16. Macleane prefers to make this 
line the conclusion of the dealer's speech, but Orelli, Dillenb., and 
others give it to Horace. — 17. Among the faults the seller of a slave 
was bound to tell was running away. — 21 - 25. Mea ; with epistola. 
Jurgares ; intransitive. Do not be cruel, and complain because I 
sent you no letter in reply. Mecum = in my favor. Attentas = 
you attack, try to overthrow. It is doubtful whether super his is 
= besides this, as in S. II. 6. 3, or = about this, as in A. P. 429. — 
26. Luculli ; i. e. L. Licinius Lucullus, who carried on the war 
against Mithridates and Tigranes, A. U. C. 680-688. Viatica 
would include money as well as baggage. — 30. Praesidium re- 
gale; a fortress in which Mithridates kept a part of his treasures. 
— 33. Bis dena sestertia = 20,000 sesterces. See on v. 5. — 40. 
Zonam ; the girdle which held up the tunic, and in which the purse 
was often carried. — 41. On this and the following verses see Life 
of Horace. Iratus — Achilles ; referring to the Iliad. — 43 - 45. 
Horace refers here only to his dialectical studies which he pursued 
in the school of the Academy. Academics was an old Attic hero, and 
there was a grove near the city on the banks of the Cephisus, which 
was dedicated to him and called Academia. Here Plato taught, and 
hence his school was named. Curvo is here = wrong, as opposed 
to rectum, right. — 47, 48. Join civilis aestus and rudem belli 
Some put civilis with belli: the tide of civil war. Caesaris — lacer- 
tis = not destined to match the strength of Augustus. — 51. Laris 
= domus. Fundi ; the estate, in distinction from the domus. — 53. 
Cicutae = hemlock, kojvclov, which was used as an antifebrile medi- 
cine. Horace asks what amount of cicala would be sufficient to cool 
his veins, if he were so feverishly bent upon writing as to do so when 
he could live without it. — 59, 60. Carmine ; sc. lyrico. Bioneis 
sermonibus ; i. e. satires. Bion was born on the Borysthencs, and 
was hence called Borysthenites. He flourished about the middle of 
the third century, B. C. He studied philosophy at Athens, and wrote 
certain books on the follies of mankind of a very bitter character. 



764 NOTES ON HORACE. 

Sale nigro = coarse wit. Some make it = bitter raillery. — 61 
He treats his friends, all asking him For different sorts of verse, as 
guests at a dinner, each liking different fare, so that he does not know 
what to give them. — 67. Cf. S. II. 6. 23. Sponsum . . . audi- 
tum ; supines. — 70, 71. Humane commoda == pretty convenient ; 
ironical. Verum — obstet. This is a supposed answer, the rejoin- 
der to which is in v. 72. Platea is a less general name than vicus. 
It applies only to the broader streets. The word, being derived from 
the Greek 7rXareta, would properly have its penult long. Purae = 
unobstructed. — 72. Calidus strengthens festinat : he is in hot 
haste. Redemptor. See on C. II. 18. 18 ; C. III. 1. 35. Cum is 
to be supplied with the ablatives. — 73 - 75. Machina ; probably 
raising a large stone or beam for the upper part of a building. Fu- 
nera. See on S. I. 6. 43.-77. Cf. C. I. 1. 30. — 80. Contracta 

— vatum = to follow the confined steps of the poets. He means 
that the poets walk in a path narrowed by strict rules, and that it is 
not easy to tread in their steps. Cf. Propertius (III. 1. 14) : Non 
datur ad Musas currere lata via. The next best of the many readings 
is contact/*, which Dillenb. adopts. — 81 - 86. Vacuas = quietas, 
otiosas. Horace says : " The man who has studied many years in all 
the advantage of seclusion often turns out unfit for authorship and 
even for society ; how much less can I deem myself fit to compose 
lyric poetry, amid the tumults and conflicts of city life ?" — 87-90. 
The lawyer said the rhetorician was a perfect Gracchus for eloquence, 
and he returned the compliment by declaring that his brother was a 
second Scaevola for legal learning. And this sort of flattery, Horace 
says, goes on among poets, and he cannot keep pace with their pas- 
sion for praise. The Gracchus may be either Tiberius or Caius : 
both were great orators. There were two distinguished jurists 
named Q. Mucius Scaevola. Meros honores = nihil nisi laudes. 

— 91-94. Mirabile — opus. This is what one of the poets says to 
the other. Quanto molimine expresses the pompous strut with 
which they enter the library of Apollo (see C. I. 31. Introd.), in which 
they take it for granted a place is reserved for them. — 95-99- 
Procul. See on Virg. A. III. 13. Ferat = says. Caedimur — 
duello ; i. e. the contest of mutual flattery is like that of two gladia- 
tors, each trying to get the better of the other. Samnites ; a class 
of gladiators so called from the arms they used. Fights of gladia- 
tors (with blunt weapons) were common amusements at Roman din- 
ners. Here the contest continues till the lights are brought in. 
Puncto illius = by his vote. At elections, certain persons called 
custodes received the votes arid checked off by points on a tablet the 
number given to each candidate. Cf. A. P. 343. — 100-105. Al- 
caeus. See on C. II. 13. 27. 



THE EPISTLES. BOOK II. EPISTLE II. 765 

drine poet of the third century, B. C. Mimnermus ; an elegiac 
poet of Colophon (or Smyrna, some say) in the sixth century, B. C. 
Optivo = desired. Idem — aures. He says when he has done 
writing and recovered his senses (which was the same thing) he shall 
stop his ears and they may recite without fear of retaliation (i??ipune). 
— 113, 114. Verba — loco ; keeping up the figure of the censor. 
See on S. I. 6. 20. Quamvis — Vestae ; i. e. although it is hard 
to expunge them, and although, having never left the author's desk, 
nobody else has found fault with them. The sanctuary of Vesta could 
only be entered by her own priestesses ; hence penetralia Vestae ex- 
presses strict privacy. — 116. Specioso — rerum = expressive 
terms ; words which are intelligible at once. Cf. A. P. 319. — 117. 
Catonibus . . . Cethegis ; the plural by a usage common in all lan- 
guages. Cf. Virg. G. II. 169. M. Porcius Cato Censorius was born 
about B. C. 234, and was therefore contemporary with Ennius, with 
whom he is associated, A. P. 56, as successfully importing new words 
into the language. Cicero had the highest opinion of Cato, and com- 
plains that he was not studied enough even in his day. M. Cornelius 
Cethegus was older than Cato, since he was curule aedile when Cato 
was no more than twenty. Ennius called Cethegus Stiadae medulla, 
orator siiaviloquenti are. Horace names him twice as an authority on 
the language (see A. P. 50).— 119. Usus. Cf. A. P. 70 foil. — 120. 
Vehemens ; a dissyllable. Cf. S. I. 5. 67. —123-125. Toilet = 
delebit. Dillenb. and Orelli make it = extollet, like Quintilian's pre- 
mere tumentia, humilia extollere (X. 4. 1). Ludentis — movetur ; 
i. e. he will work hard to produce a result which shall appear playful 
and easy, the turns being as easy as those of the mimus, who dances 
either the light measure of the nimble Satyr, or the clumsy dance of 
the Cyclops (see on S. I. 5. 63). The poet's art is to conceal his art. 
On Satyrum see A. & S. 232 (2). — 126-128. Praetulerim — 
ringi. This is supposed to be the remark of one who would be a 
poet without the necessary trouble. He would rather be pleased with 
his own bad verses, even though he might be deceiving himself, than 
be so learned and be perpetually vexed with himself. — 129-135. Sir 
Henry Halford furnishes a parallel story (Essays, p. 61) : " One case, 
that of the gentleman of Argos, whose delusion led him to suppose 
that he was attending the representation of a play, as he sat in his 
bedchamber, is so exact, that I saw a person of exalted rank (George 
III.) under those very circumstances of delusion, and heard him call 
upon Mr. Garrick to exert himself in the performance of Hamlet." 
Signo laeso. Cf. C. III. 8. 10-12. Horace says that the man was 
not one who would get furious if he found the slaves had opened a 
lagena, and drunk the contents. — 137. Hellebore was a common 
medicine for madness. Cf. A. P. 300. — 139. Cut Gr. 385. 4. 



766 NOTES ON HORACE. 

A. & S. 224, R. 2. — 141, 142. But after all it is best to give up 
child's play and verse-making, and to take to philosophy. The 
dative pueris depends on both tempestivum and concedere. — 
148. Faterier. See on E. II. 1. 94. So curarier, v. 151. — 152. 
Illi. Gr. 386. 2. A. & S. 224, R. 1. — 153. Ex quo ; sc. tempore. — 
158 - 160. There was a mode of sale which was called per aes et 
libram. A third person held a pair of scales (libra), which the pur- 
chaser touched with a piece of money, at the same time laying his 
hand on the thing purchased. According to a set form of words he 
claimed the thing as his own, and handed the money to the seller as a 
token of the sum agreed upon. This form of purchase was called 
mancipatio. The seller was said mancipio dare (to which mancipare 
in this place is equivalent), and the purchaser was said mancipio ac- 
cipere. A man might become owner of res mancipii by having been in 
possession for a certain time. Hence usus is said mancipare, because 
the effect is the same whether a man got his ownership by usus, that 
is, possession, or by mancipatio. Repeat si before quaedam. Orbi ; 
the owner of the land, whoever he may have been. — 165-168. 
Nummorum. See on v. 5. Vivas. Gr. 526. II. 2. A. & S. 265, 
R. 2. Numerato ; sc. nummo. Emptor quondam = is qui quon- 
dam emit. Gr. 352. 4. A. & S. 205, R. 11 {b). Aricini. See on 
S. I. 5. 1. Veientis. Veii was an ancient city of Etruria, which 
after having been long in ruins was restored by Augustus. Coenat ; 
here transitive. — 170, 171. Usque . . . qua = usque ad eum locum 
ubi. Limitibus; with adsita. Vicina — jurgia = prevents the 
neighbors from quarrelling. Vicina = vicinorum, as altera, v. 174,= 
alterius. Refugit ; aoristic perfect. — 177 - 179. Vici = villas. 
Saltibus ; pastures, wooded or otherwise, on hills or in valleys and 
plains. Those of Calabria were low and without wood ; those of Lu- 
cania were among the hills. Orcus. Cf. C. II. 3. 4 ; II. 14. 5. — 
180 - 182. Tyrrhena sigilla ; small bronze images of the gods, 
of Etrurian workmanship. Gaetulo murice. See on C. II. 16. 
35. Sunt — habeant. See on C. I. 1. 3. — 184. Herod the Great 
derived a large revenue from the woods of palm which abounded 
in Judea, especially about Jericho (Deut. xxxiv. 3). — 187. Genius. 
See on E. II. 1. 144. — 189. Albus et ater = cheerful and gloomy. 
— 193. Nepoti = the spendthrift. Gr. 385. 4. A. & S. 225, R. 3. 
So avaro. — 195. Spargas. See on vivas, v. 166. — 197. Quin- 
quatribus. See on Ov. Trist. IV. 10. 13. Cf. also Ov. Fast. III. 
809 : Fuerunt hi dies pueris gratissimi jucundissimique, quia donee 
quinquatria durabant, feriae in scholis erant. Olim. Cf. S. I. I. 25. 
— 198. Raptim. Cf. Ep. XIII. 3, 4. —199. Domus has no 
meaning here. The MSS. vary, and the best critics have failed to 
make out what Horace really wrote. Of the many conjectural read- 



THE ART OF POETRY. 767 

ings modo axi&firocul (cf. Virg. A. VI. 258) are perhaps the best, but 
neither is satisfactory. — 201. Cf. C. II. 10. 23, 24. — 202. Duci- 
m.u&= agimus. Cf. Virg. A. II. 641 ; IV. 340. —205-210. Non 

— fugere. " You are no miser : go to ; what, do all your faults van- 
ish with that?" Tibi. Gr. 398. 5. A. & S. 211, R. 5 (1). Lemu- 
res. The belief in ghosts was as common with the ancients as 
with the superstitious among ourselves. The spirits of the dead were 
worshipped as Manes, Lares, Lemures, and Larvae. Under the two 
former names were recognized the spirits of the good (see on E. 
II. 1. 138) ; the other two represented cruel spirits coming up to ter- 
rify and torment the living. The Thessalians had the credit of ex- 
traordinary power in magic and drugs. Natales — nunieras = 
Are you happy when you count up your birthdays ? i. e. are you con- 
tent to see yourself advancing in life and drawing near the end of it ? 

— 211-216. Senecta. Gr. 140. A. & S. 99.4. Spinis ; i.e. 
vitiis. Vivere — peritis = If you do not know how to live pro- 
perly, quit the stage and give place to those who do. Potum ; sc te. 
Gr. 262. 1 and 2. A. & S. 162. 16. Aequo. See on E. I. 2. 29. 
Lasciva — aetas = a time of life which may be wanton with less 
indecency ; i. e. youth, to which it is more natural. 



THE ART OF POETRY. 

Not a few able commentators have considered the Ars Poetica a 
systematic treatise on the Art of Poetry, and have traced out the 
poet's plan, each in his own way. It would be more amusing than 
edifying to give an outline of the widely different results to which they 
have arrived. One thinks that Horace wrote, at the request of Piso 
pater, to dissuade the elder son from the pursuit of poetry, and that, 
after general remarks on his theme addressed to the three Pisos, he 
proceeds to instruct the two sons in regard to the drama, its history, 
its rules, etc., and finally, having exhausted that subject, turns short 
on the elder son (v. 366) and warns him of the danger of precipitate 
publication and the ridicule to which the unsuccessful author exposes 
himself. Another thinks that it was written with a view to the regen- 
eration of the Roman drama, and that every precept in it has reference 
to that one purpose. Other theories differ as much from these as 
these from each other. 

On the other hand, many critics have viewed it as a medley of 
critical remarks and rules, without any attempt at order or arrange- 



768 NOTES ON HORACE. 

ment ; and some have even thought that it was made up from frag- 
ments of Horace's composition clumsily put together and published 
after his death. 

The truth probably lies between these two extremes. To find an 
accurate system in Horace is not to be expected : a conversational 
method and a " graceful negligence " are the distinguishing features 
of his Satires and Epistles, and it is not probable that this Epistle to 
the Pisos is an exception to his general style. The old Scholiast 
Porphyrion tells us that the poem was principally compiled from the 
more methodical work of Neoptolemus ; and, as this account appears 
liable to no objections, the most probable conclusion that can be 
formed on the subject is that Horace intended to convey in a popular 
form the elements of critical science, as he had already treated those 
of the science of ethics. 

But in a treatise, however familiar and unmethodical, on poetry, 
the drama would naturally claim peculiar attention ; and the more so, 
in this instance, because of the extreme degeneracy of that province 
of poetry at the time when the treatise was written. Without going 
minutely into the causes of the disease, which were many and com- 
plicated, the literary patriot would point out to his countrymen the 
means of remedy, by recalling their attention to good models and 
well-grounded maxims. And this is exactly what Horace has done. 
Although all his precepts are intended for the Roman poet, he admits 
no other excellence (except in subject) than that which the Greeks 
allowed ; and, whatever may be thought of the value of his canons to 
the modern poet, it is certain that the Romans, whose main excel- 
lence lay in imitation, succeeded precisely in proportion as they re- 
garded the laws which, existing before in the reason of things or in 
the practice of the Greeks, were digested and elucidated by Horace. 

It is not certain to whom this Epistle was addressed, but some of 
the best critics agree in selecting the L. Piso who was consul, B. C. 
15. If they are right, as he was born B. C. 49, he might have a son 
verging upon manhood in B. C. 8, the last year of Horace's life, and 
the poem could hardly have been written earlier than that. Those 
who assume a different Piso (Cnaeus) make the date some dozen 
years earlier. 

1 - 37. The importance of simplicity and unity is inculcated. — 
1-5. This monster with a woman's head and a fish's tail, with a 
horse's neck, limbs from all manner of beasts, and feathers of all sorts 
of birds, Horace considered a good illustration of some of the poetry 
of his day. Membris ; dative. Ut == so that. Spectatum ; su- 
pine. — 9 - 18. Pictoribus — potestas is a supposed reply that 
painters and poets are privileged people, which Horace admits, but 
within certain limits. — 19. Et fortasse, etc. The Scholiasts tell a 



THE ART OF POETRY. 769 

story of a painter who could paint nothing well but a cypress, and 
when a sailor wanted a picture of a shipwreck, asked him if he 
would n't like a cypress in it. — 22. Rota ; i. e. the potter's wheel. 
— 26-29. Levia; smoothness. Nervi; vigor. Grandia; sub- 
limity. Prodigialiter ; with variare ; i. e. so as to produce startling 
effects. — 32. The Aemilius ludus was a gladiators' school. Unus 
=praeter ceteros. Some read imus. — 38 - 72. The choice of a sub- 
ject ; the arrangement ; the expression. — 40-42. Potenter =pro 
suis viribus, Kara dvvafxiv. Facundia = expression. Venus = 
beauty. — 43. Nunc adds intensity to jam : just now. — 46. Tenuis ; 
discriminating. Serendis ; (arranging) from serere, serui, rather than 
severe, sevi> as some make it. — 47-50. Si — novum; i. e. if old 
words get a new force from their connection. Rerum. Gr. 438. 5. 
A. & S. 205, R. 9 (b). Cinctutis ; i. e. ancient : the cinctus having 
been worn before the introduction of the tunica. Cethegis. See on 
E. II. 2. 117. — 54-56. Caecilio Plautoque. See on E. II. 1. 
59, 170. Romanus. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 851. Catonis et Enni. 
See on E. II. 2. 117. Ego invideor; for mihi invidetur : aGrecism. 

— 59 - 61. Signatum — producere = to give currency to a word 
stamped with a modern mark : a metaphor from the mint. Ut — ca- 
dunt = as woods in respect to their leaves at the close of the year 
are changed, yea they are the first to fall. The construction is irregu- 
lar, but the meaning is clear. — 63-69. Receptus — arcet. See 
on Virg. G. II. 161 foil. Regis ; i. e. worthy of a king. Sterilisve 

— aratrum may refer to the draining of the Pomptine marshes, in 
Campania. Cursum — melius ; referring, perhaps, to clearing out 
the bed of the Tiber, to put an end to inundations (Suetonius, Octav. 
30). Stet. Gr. 493. 4. A. & S. 262, N. 5. — 71. Usus = usage. 
Cf. E. II. 2. 119. — 73-85. The different kinds of poetry and their 
appropriate measures. — 75. Versibus — junctis ; i. e. elegiac 
measure, of which the extract from Ovid's Tristia, p. 61, is an ex- 
ample. Gr. 676. 2. A. & S. 311, R. 2. Querimonia; mourning 
for the dead. — 76. Post — compos ; i. e. afterwards the elegiac 
measure came to be used for amatory poetry. — 79 - 82. Archi- 
lochum; one of the earliest Ionian lyric poets (B. C. 714-676). 
Socci . . . cothurni; i. e. comedy . . . tragedy. See on E. II. 1. 174. 
Alternis sermonibus; i. e. dialogue. The iambus overcomes 
the noise of the theatre (popidares strepitus) by the clear intona- 
tion it admits of. — 83-85. Fidibus = to the lyre. The leading 
kinds of lyric poetry are briefly mentioned : poems on mythological 
subjects ; hymns in honor of the victors at public games (emviKia) ; 
love-songs and drinking-songs. — 86-135. Style, as modified by 
the subject. Illustrations are drawn from tragedy and comedy, in- 
volving the consideration of the language, the characters, the plot, 



770 NOTES ON HORACE. 

and the subjects handled. — 86 - 88. Descriptas vices ; i. e. the 

parts assigned to each class of poetry. Operum colores ; the color- 
ing of poems. Pudens prave = through a false shame. — 90 - 91. 
Privatis ; the language of everyday life. Coena Thyestae. The 
murder of the children of Thyestes by Atreus and the serving them 
up at their father's table was a favorite subject with the ancient tra- 
gedians. — 94-98. Chremes; one of Terence's characters, put for 
comic characters generally; as Telephus and Peleus for tragic 
characters. Sesquipedalia = a foot and a half long. — 99. Dul- 
cia ; i. e. affecting. The next verse explains it. — 104. Male ; with 
mandata: improperly assigned you, not suited to your character. 
— 108. Prius corresponds to post, v. in : first, the feeling; after- 
wards, the expression. — 113. Equites peditesque ; i. e. all the 
citizens of Rome, with reference to their division by Servius Tullius 
(Livy, I. 44). — 119. The poet should follow tradition and common 
belief, or, if he invents, his inventions should be consistent with 
themselves. — 120. Honoratus = renowned, kXvtos. Reponis 
= put upon the stage again. — 122. Nihil — armis = let him claim 
everything for arms ; i. e. make arms his one appeal. — 123, 124. 
Ino. See on Virg. G. I. 437. Ixion. See on Virg. A. VI. 601. 
Io ; the daughter of Inachus, king of Argos, whose wanderings in the 
form of a cow are related in many ways. Orestes. See on Virg. A. 
III. 331 ; IV. 471. — 128. Proprie — dicere. Of the various ex- 
planations of this much disputed passage, only two deserve notice. 
The one makes commtmia = what everybody knows, or what is com- 
mon property, as opposed to fictions of one's own creating, and pro- 
prie dicere = to tell it so as to make it one's own. The other makes 
communia = abstract ideas, general conceptions, and proprie dicere 
= to individualize ; the whole being = from general ideas to form 
individual characters. If we adopt the former, we must either make 
tuque, etc., mean : " and yet you had better do this, by dramatizing 
the Iliad, than to be the first to handle new subjects " ; or, if we- do 
not thus strain the meaning of the -que, we must give a forced render- 
ing to the rest of the sentence. On the whole, we prefer the other 
explanation. It is both illustrated and supported by Quintilian (Inst. 
Or. VII. 1) : Non dissimile huic est Mud praeceptum ut a communibus 
ad propria veniamus. Fere enim communia generalia sunt. Com- 
mune est, tyrannum occidit ; proprium, Viriatum tyrannum occidit. 
Cicero and Tacitus also use the words in the same way. For a very 
full and able discussion of the passage see Lincoln ad loc. — 131. 
Publica — erit = public materials will become private property. 
Dillenb. explains publica as jam saepius tractata et ita quasi publici 
juris facta. — 132. What Horace means is, the hackneyed round of 
subjects, phrases, and illustrations, ground which anybody may tread, 



THE ART OF POETRY. 77 1 

and many have trod already. Patulum is opposed to arctum, " a 
strait," i. e. narrow ground, in which you must tread precisely in the 
steps of him whom you follow, " out of which diffidence or the plan 
of the work forbids you to move " (v. 135) ; i. e. prevents you from 
showing any originality. — 136 - 152. The proper beginning of a 
poem. — 136. A class of Epic poets arose some time after Homer, 
who adopted subjects akin to his, and connected their poems with 
his ; their design being to form their poems and Homer's into one 
cycle, embracing the whole history of the Trojan times, whence they 
came to be called Cyclic poets. — 139. Athenaeus (XIV. 6) quotes a 
proverb : o>8lv€V opos, Zei/s 8' ecpofielro, to §' eVe/cei/ \ivv. — 141, 142. 
A version of the first lines of the Odyssey. Cf. E. I. 2. 19 foil. — 
143 - 145. Horace says of Homer, that he does not begin with a 
flash which ends in smoke, but with him out of smoke comes a bright 
light ; that is, out of a modest beginning the reader is led on to beau- 
ties and objects of interest ; and he is carried rapidly forward, instead 
of being detained over matters preliminary and irrelevant. The stories 
referred to are all in the Odyssey. Antiphates was king of the Laestry- 
gones, a gigantic race in Sicily, who devoured three of the companions 
of Ulysses, and destroyed his ships (X. 80 foil.). The adventure with 
Polyphemus, the Cyclops, forms the leading event of the ninth book. 
The description of Scylla and Charybdis is contained in the twelfth 
book (vv. 85 foil.). Cf. Virg. A. III. 420, 613 foil. — 146, 147. 
Meleager was uncle to Diomed, being brother to Tydeus. The cause 
of his death is variously related. According to Homer, he was cursed 
by his mother, Althaea, for the slaughter of her two brothers (II. IX. 
567 foil), and her Erinnys pursued him to his death. But as this 
was before the Trojan war, and had nothing to do with it, to begin an 
account of Diomed's return with an account of his uncle's death 
would be absurd enough. Gemino . . . ab ovo ; i. e. from the birth 
of Helen, who was born from one of the eggs brought forth by Leda, 
while Castor and Pollux issued from the other. — 151, 152. Men- 
titur = invents. Ita . . . sic . . . ne = so . . . so . . . that not. — 
153 - 284. Rules of dramatic poetry, interspersed with historical 
notices. — 154-157. Aulaea. See on Ov. M. III. in and cf. E. 
II. 1. 189. Cantor = histrio. Vos plaudite; the words with 
which a play usually concluded. Mobilibus — annis ; i. e. men's 
characters change with the different stages of life, and these changes 
must be attended to. With the passage that follows compare Shake- 
speare's " Seven Ages"; Boileau, Art Po'tique, III. 373 foil. ; Delille, 
Imagination, VI. 24 foil. — 161-165. Custode ; the paedagogus. 
See on S. I. 6. 81. Campi ; sc. Martii. Sublimis = high-spirited. 
— 172. Spe longus = slow to hope. So Orelli, Dillenb., Macleane, 
and others. Some translate : indulging in distant expectations. Avi- 



772 NOTES ON HORACE. 

dus futuri = greedy of life, eager to live longer. — 176. Ne = lest, 
that not. —178. Aevo ; with both adjunctis and aptis. — 184. 
Facundia praesens ; i. e. an eye-witness who tells the story before 
the audience. — 185-187. Medea. Cf. v. 123. When deserted 
by Jason, Medea murdered the two children she had borne to him. 
Atreus. See on v. 91. Avem; a swallow (Ov.) or a nightingale 
(Virg., Propertius, etc.). Cadmus. See on Ov. M. III. 98. — 191, 
192. Nee — inciderit ; i. e. do not make a god interpose unless the 
exigency demands it. Nee — laboret. Thespis introduced a single 
actor, Aeschylus a second, Sophocles a third, and with the Greeks it 
was ever after the rule that only three should take part in the dia- 
logue. — 193 - 195. The chorus should sustain the part of an actor ; 
that is, what it sings ought to carry on the action. Officium virile 
= a strenuous part. — 196-201. The office here ascribed to the 
chorus is " a general expression of moral sympathy, exhortation, in- 
struction and warning " (Schlegel). The chorus is "the ideal spec- 
tator ; . . . a personified reflection upon the action that is going on." 
Mensae brevis. Cf. C. II. 16. 14. Otia = peace. Cf. C. III. 5. 
23. Tegat commissa = let it keep the secrets intrusted to it. 
Being present through the whole play, it was necessarily the confidant 
of all the actors. — 202 - 207. Horace says that in simpler days the 
tibia served for an accompaniment to the chorus, but afterwards- it 
came to drown it. In those days the population of the city was 
smaller, the theatres less crowded, and the audience more reverential 
and attentive. — 210. Genius. Cf. E. II. 1. 144 ; II. 2. 187. foil. — 
215. The pallet worn by tragic actors had a train which swept the 
stage. Pulpita. See on E. II. 1. 174. — 216-219. Horace says 
that in the course of time the grave style of music to which the cho- 
ruses were once sung gave way to a more vehement style, as the elo- 
quence of the chorus grew more impetuous, and it began to speak in 
language obscure, prophetic,, and oracular. — 220 - 229. Horace 
here passes on to the Satyric Drama of the Greeks. A goat was the 
prize contended for in the composition of the choral songs or dithy- 
rambs to which the name rpayepbia first belonged. The name may 
have been derived from the prize. The chorus appeared in the 
character of Satyrs as attendants on Dionysus (Bacchus), at whose 
festival they performed. Their subjects were originally confined to 
the adventures, serious and sportive, of that god, and therefore were a 
mixture of mirth and gravity. Nudavit = nudos induxit in scenam. 
Ludo. See on C. I. 35. 4. Regali — tabernas ; i. e. let not him 
who but now came forward in gold and purple (the garb of a god or 
hero) descend to the low language of a frequenter of taverns. Ob- 
scuras ; because they were often vaults or cellars. — 231-233. 
Tragedy should move like a modest and stately matron among the 



THE ART OF POETRY. 773 

Satyrs. Moveri = saltare, as in E. II. 2. 125. — 234. Inornata = 

literal, as opposed to figurative. Dominantia = prevalent, in com- 
mon use ; but some make it = literal, like Kvpia. — 236. Colori. Gr. 
385. 4. A. & S. 224, R. 3. — 238. Pythias seems to be the name of 
a slave-girl who cheated her master, Simo, out of some money. — 
239. Silenus. See on Ov. M. XI. 90. — 240. Ex noto; referring 
to the style, or, as some say, to the subject. — 244-250. Horace 
says that rough Fauns from the woods should not talk as if they had 
been born in the city, or languish in love verses like a silly youth ; 
neither should their language be low, for this is sure to offend the re- 
fined in the audience, even if the vulgar applaud it. — 252-262. 
Unde — sibi ; i. e. it caused the verse to take the form of a trimeter. 
See Gr. 683. A. & S. 314. The admission of the spondee, Horace 
says, was an after invention. Non ita pridem = not so (very) long 
ago. In — recepit = gave a share of its patrimony. Socialiter = 
"like a good comrade," in a friendly way. Hie; sc. pes, i. e. the 
iambus. Acci . . . Enni. See on E. II. 1. 50, 56. Nobilibus = 
famous ; perhaps ironical. Note the five spondees in v. 260. Gr. 
672. 2. A. & S. 310. 2. — 263 - 268. Not every critic can detect an 
unrhythmical verse, and so an indulgence they do not deserve is ac- 
corded to our poets. " But am I on this account to take all manner 
of liberties ? Or, on the other hand, am I to suppose that every one 
will see my faults, and keep safely and cautiously within the limits of 
forgiveness ? Why, if I do this, I may have avoided a fault, but I shall 
have earned no praise." — 270 - 274. But your fathers admired both 
the rhythm and the wit of Plautus. Yes, stupidly enough, if we know 
the difference between coarseness and wit, and can scan a verse. See 
on E. II. 1. 170. Sales. Gr. 132. A. & S. 97. —276 - 280. Thes- 
pis is said to have invented Tragedy, travelling about with his wagon 
and his actors smeared with wine-lees. Then came Aeschylus with 
mask, robe, buskin, and stage, and taught them to speak grandly. 
See on v. 192 and E. II. 1. 163, 174. Horace confounds the early his- 
tory of Tragedy with that of Comedy. — 281-284. The period of 
the old Greek Comedy was B.C. 458-404. Its earliest poet was 
Cratinus. — 285-476. After alluding to the aversion of Roman poets 
to careful composition, and their absurd notions of poetic inspiration 
(285-303), Horace goes on to explain critically what is necessary 
for the formation and the guidance of the poet (304-476). — 288. 
Praetextas. Fabulae praetextae, or praetextatae, were tragedies, as 
togatae were comedies. See on E. II. 1. 57. — 290. Si non, etc. 
Cf. E. II. 1. 167. —292. Pompilius. Gr. 369. 2. A. & S. 105, R. 
3. The family of the Phones claimed descent from Numa Pompilius. 
— 294. Ad unguem. See on S. I. 5. 32. — 295-298. Because 
genius is above art, and all poets, according to Democritus (see on 



774 NOTES ON HORACE. 

E. II. I. 194), are mad, many neglect their persons, let their nails 
and their beards grow, and affect insanity. Helicone. Cf. E. II. 1. 
218. — 300. Anticyris. There were three places of this name, hut 
tribus here is a mere hyperbole. — 301, 302. O ego laevus. Gr. 
669. I. 2 ; 381. 3. 2). A. & S. 305 (1) ; 209, R. 13. Cf. Virg. A. II. 
54. Horace says he must be a fool, since madness makes the poet, 
for taking medicines to keep his stomach in order. Cf. E. II. 2. 137. 
— 309. Philosophy (sapere) is the foundation of good writing. — 
310, 311. Rem = subject matter. Socraticae ; referring to the 
disciples of Socrates, as Plato, Xenophon, etc. Verbaque — se- 
quentur. Cf. Boileau (A. P. I. 153) : Ce que Von concoit Men s'enonce 
clairement, Et les mots pour le dire s'arrivent aisement. — 314. C011- 
scripti = senatoris : nowhere else so used. — 318. Vivas = vivid, 
life-like. — 319 - 322. Sometimes commonplaces strikingly put com- 
mend a play of no great merit more than empty verses and melodious 
nonsense. — 323, 324. Ore rotundo ; i. e. perfect expression, elo- 
quence. Nullius ; sc. rei. — 325 - 330. Horace is representing a 
scene in a boys' school. Master. Let the son of Albinus tell me : if 
you take an uncia from a quincunx, how much remains ? (The boy 
hesitates.) You used to know. Boy. A triens. Master. Very well. 
You will know how to take care of your money. Now add an uncia : 
what is the sum ? Boy. A semis. Gr. 712. 1. A. & S. 327. — 332. 
Books were smeared with oil of cedar to keep them from the insects. 
Capsae cupressinae, book- cases of cypress- wood, were costly, and 
would be used only for valuable books. — 337. Omne — manat ; 
i. e. when the mind is full it has no room for superfluities ; as what 
you pour into a full vessel overflows and is lost. — 340. Lamiae ; 
hags, or ogresses, who were said to devour children. — 341, 342. 
The centuriae are those of Servius Tullius. Those who were older 
than forty-five were classed with the seniores. The grave seniors like 
no poetry that has not something profitable and instructive in it. 
The Ramnes were the highest of the three centuries of equites which 
Romulus is said to have formed. They were patricians, and Horace 
calls them celsi, " proud." He opposes them to seniores, as young to 
old. — 343. Punctum. See on E. II. 2. 99. — 345. Sosiis. See 
on E. I. 20. 2. — 347. Ignovisse. See on callegisse, C. I. 1. 4. — 
353. Quid — est = what are we to say then ? — 354. Idem. Gr. 
371. 1. 3) (2). A. & S. 232 (3). Scriptor librarius ; the slave who 
acts as copyist. — 357. Cessat. Cf. E. II. 2. 14. Choerilus. See 
on E. II. 1. 233. — 358. Idem. See on C. II. 10. 22. — 359. 
Homerus ; i. e. any great poet. — 361. Erit quae. See on C. I. 
1. 3. — 366-373. Horace goes on to say that mediocrity, though 
tolerable in some things, is intolerable in poetry. Tolle memor. 
Cf. Virg. A. VI. 377. Messallae; M. Valerius Messalla Corvinus, 



THE ART OF POETRY. 775 

who was distinguished as an orator. A. Cascellius was a juriscon- 
sultus. Mediocribus. Gr. 547. II. and 1. Cf. A. & S. 269, R. 5. 
Columnae ; i. e. the booksellers' shops. — 375. Sardinian honey- 
was bitter. Cf. Virg. E. VII. 41. Poppy-seeds roasted and mixed 
with honey were a Roman delicacy. — 377, 378. Sic — imum = 
so poetry, which was born and invented only to give pleasure to the 
soul, if it fail but a little of the highest point, inclines to the lowest. 
— 379. Campestribus ; i. e. of the Campus Martius. — 381. 
Coronae ; the ring of spectators. — 382 - 384. Quidni ? Ironi- 
cal. He is a free man, and born free, and has a good property, and 
is a good man : why then should he not write ? Census = rated : a 
participle. Summam ; i. e. 400 sestertia (about $ 15,000), the prop- 
erty qualification for admission to the equestrian order. Gr. 380. 
A. & S. 234. II. — 385. Tu ; emphatic. Invita Minera ; i. e., 
Cicero says, adversante et repugnante natura. — 386. Olim = ever. 
See on C. II. 10. 17. — 387. Maeci ; Sp. Maecius Tarpa, a cele- 
brated critic. — 388, 389. Cf. E. II. 2. 114. Intus = m scrinio. 
391. Horace goes on to ascribe the noblest results to the cultivation 
of true poetry ; the civilization of mankind (represented under the 
legend of Orpheus taming wild beasts), the building of cities, the 
origin of law and social order. Sacer — deorum. Cf. Virg. A. VI. 
645. — 394. Amphion. See on Ov. M. VI. 178. — 399. Laws in 
very early times were written in verse, and those of Solon, according 
to Plutarch, were cut on wooden tables. — 402. Tyrtaeus ; a native 
of Attica, who took up his abode at Sparta during the second Messe- 
nian war, which began B. C. 685. His verses were chiefly exhorta- 
tions to bravery addressed to the Spartans. — 403. Sortes; oracular 
responses, which were in verse. — 404. Vitae — est ; referring to 
the didactic poetry of Hesiod, Theognis, and others. — 405-407. 
Pieriis. See on C. III. 4. 40. Ludusque, etc. refers to the origin 
of dramatic poetry in the rural Dionysia. This festival was at the 
end of the year, when the labors of the vintage were over. See E. II. 
1. 140 foil. Cf. Virg. G. II. 380 foil. Pudori. Gr. 390. I. A. & S. 
227. — 408-411. It is questioned, Horace says, whether poetry 
comes by nature or by teaching. He thinks both must be combined. 
Rude = incultum. — 412. Metam. See on C. I. 1. 4. — 413. Puer 
is emphatic : he takes great pains when he is young. Cf. C. I. 9. 16. 
414. Pythia cantat ; sings in the Pythian games, at which there was 
a musical contest. — 417. Occupet — scabies = plague take the 
hindmost ! The Scholiasts say this expression was used by boys in 
their races. — 419. Praeco. See on S. I. 6. 86. As the crier calls 
buyers to an auction, so the rich poet attracts a crowd of venal flat- 
terers. — 422 - 425. Unctum — pos«it = who can serve up a good 
dinner handsomely. Spondere. See on S. II. 6. 23. Levi ; i. e. 



776 NOTES ON HORACE. 

whose credit is as poor as his purse is light Atris. Cf. atra Cura, 
C. III. i. 40. Beatus; wealthy.— 426-433. If you have made a 
man a present, or are going to do so, don't invite him to hear your 
verses. He will be sure to applaud and weep, or laugh or dance with 
pretended pleasure. Flatterers are like the hired mourners at a 
funeral, who make more fuss than the friends. See on S. I. 6. 43. 
Derisor =falsus laudator. — 435. Torquere mero = to ply with 
wine ; which brings out the truth as torture might. — 436, 437. Si 

— latentes ; i. e. if you ever write poetry, do not be taken in by flat- 
terers, who have a bad heart under a cunning face. — 438. Quin- 
tilio. See C. I. 24. Introd. Sodes. See on S. I. 9. 41. —439 -441. 
Negares ; sc. si. Gr. 512. 1. The metaphors of the lathe and the 
anvil are common enough for the composition of verses. The lathe 
was used by the ancients in turning metals, as well as wood and ivory. 

— 444. Quin amares depends on the idea of hindering involved in 
operam insumebat (Dillenb.). Orelli explains the subj. by the 
oratio obliqua. — 450. Aristarchus, whose name was proverbial as 
a critic, was born in Samothracia about B. C. 230. He passed the 
greater part of his life at Alexandria, and was the tutor of Ptolemaeus 
Epiphanes. — 453. Morbus regius, otherwise called arquatus ?nor- 
bus, aurugo, and by the Greeks 'litre pos, is the jaundice. Celsus says 
it is so called because the remedies resorted to were chiefly amuse- 
ments and indulgences to keep up the spirits, such as none but the rich 
could afford. Horace appears to have thought it infectious. — 454. 
Fanaticus error ; i. e. frenzy like that of the priests of Bellona. 
The influence of the moon (iracunda Diana) in producing insanity 
is one of the earliest fallacies in medicine. The Greeks called these 
lunatici aeX^viaKoi — 455, 456. The wise avoid him, as if he were 
infectious ; fools run after him, like boys after a crazy man in the 
streets. — 460. Non sit. Gr. 488. 3. A. & S. 260, R." 6 (b). — 462. 
Qui = how. Prudens = on purpose. — 463 - 466. Empedocles 
was a philosopher of Agrigentum, who flourished about 450 B. C. 
This story of his death is rejected by the critics as a mere fable. — 
467. Occidenti. Gr. 391. 3. A. & S. 222, R. 7. This is the only 
spondaic hexameter in Horace. — 469. He keeps up the allusion to 
Empedocles, saying that the frenzied poet is as resolved to rush to 
his fate (that is, into verse) as the philosopher was, and if you save 
him he will not drop his pretension to inspiration. — 470 - 472. The 
crime for which he has been made thus mad does not appear ; whether 
it be for defiling his father's grave, or setting foot upon polluted 
ground. Bidental was a spot struck by lightning, so called from the 
sacrifice offered upon it for expiation. WLov exit — violaver it. Some 
take it to mean the removal of the mark placed on the spot. 

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